An Issue of Comfort
by Blue Notes and Smoke
Summary: With the Yule Ball approaching, Harry, upset about the Ball, speaks to Hermione about his fears and thoughts, yielding an interesting twist in regards to the Yule Ball. Will continue through Fourth Year, maybe more [Harry x Hermione friendship to romance]
1. Nervous Breakdown

**Foreword**: This is just a short little story I'm using to test the waters… This is my first story (if it can be considered that…). Double Quotations denote speech, and single quotations denotes thought.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to any of this… And sadly, I don't own the rights to David Bowie either… I'm just having a bit of fun.

* * *

Harry glanced around the Common Room quickly, and warily. 'I've made it… I can finally get some peace and quiet…' He had been dodging as many people as was physically possible. News had gotten out that the Yule Ball was going to take place… something which Harry was quite content to avoid at all costs.

Unfortunately for him, it seemed as though _everyone _in his year, and even people _not _in his year wanted to go with him… He had even gotten a few strange requests from the male populace.

'But none of that matters now! I'm _safe _up here… Hopefully everybody believes I'm still at the Great Hall… It's not like I had much of an appetite tonight anyway…' Letting out a heaving sigh, Harry spread his arms over the back of one of the couches, and closed his eyes. For the longest time, he could only hear his own breathing, and the gentle crackle of the fire.

When his emerald eyes finally pierced through their skin cage, he was greeted by possibly one of the most disturbingly breathtaking sights ever. He stared, dumbfounded, at the sight of Albus Dumbledore grinning wildly, with an arm around a man that looked suspiciously familiar… "I-Is that David Bowie?!" Harry exclaimed, hopping to his feet.

The paper moved aside, and Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "Of _course _that's David Bowie… He was Professor Dumbledore's greatest prodigy… Haven't you read _Hogwarts: A History_ yet?! That was in Chapter… Thirty-six? No, how silly of me. It was in Chapter Thirty-eight."

"Wh-When did you get here, Hermione?! I thought I was alone!"

Laughing lightly, she shook her head, "Honestly, Harry… I've been here the whole time. I saw you come in and proceed to toss yourself at that couch." With a grin she said, "A bit disturbing really… You seemed quite intent upon making a move on that couch."

He plopped back down, stretching his legs out. "It's just been a _rough _week…" Harry groaned, as he wearily eyed his friend. After a few moments of silence, realization struck him, as he said, "Wait a moment… _David_ _Bowie_… As in, the _musician_, David Bowie… is a _wizard?!_"

"Of _course _he was, Harry…" She made it sound as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You couldn't possibly think he looks as young as he does _without _magic, could you? He _is _already over one hundred years old." Hermione raised the Daily Prophet once more and continued what she had been doing earlier.

Glancing at his watch, Harry smiled. He still had approximately two hours of sol… well… _mainly _solitude. Hermione was still in the room, but he had nothing to worry about from her… She was content to simply continue reading, and leave him be. The bookworm had an uncanny knack for knowing what Harry wanted.

"I _love _this couch…" Harry said, lying across it with a grin. "After a day like this, I _need _to relax…"

Chuckling, Hermione spoke from behind her newspaper, saying, "Well, why don't you ask the couch to the Yule Ball? I'm sure it would be _very _responsive…"

"Ugh… Don't even remind me of the Yule Ball…" Grimacing, the young man said, "I can't seem to get even the tiniest amount of personal time… I have to actually _hide_ from people for a little free time."

Disgusted, he mimicked the voice of a girl, with an annoyingly high pitched-grating sound, "Harry! Harry! Are you going to the Yule Ball with anybody? I haven't got a date yet, so why don't you take _me_?!"

"Oh, gee. I don't know. Maybe because I don't even plan on taking _myself!_" Harry was quite animated, upon that couch, holding his own conversation.

Miserably trying to stifle her laughter, Hermione put her newspaper aside and said, "You _know _something's wrong once you've started talking to yourself, Harry." She warmly smiled at him and said, "I've no doubt that you'll have an absolute blast at the Ball."

"Uh, Hermione, I do. In fact, I _highly _doubt it…"

Hermione got a bad vibe from her best friend, and moved to a chair much closer to the couch he was on. "Harry… What's wrong? It's… just a dance. It's nothing out of the ordinary."

"But it is! It is, Hermione! It's not just a dance… everyone will be judging me… everyone will be expecting something from me… It… It really makes me nervous." Harry sat up, and faced the girl. 'At least I can talk to her… Ron would just laugh at me, and tell me to pick a bloody girl.'

Taking a deep breath, he spoke more softly, "I just… I can't stand it… I'm not a good dancer whatsoever. With all that's been going on with the Triwizard Tournament, I just want time to relax… I don't want to feel like I've got another task added into the mix."

Glancing at him skeptically, Hermione said, "Harry, why do I doubt that your inability to dance has _anything _to do with it?"

Cradling his head between his hands, Harry mumbled, "I'm… not comfortable with it… The closeness and '_affection_'… I just… I'm Harry Potter. Not The-Boy-Who-Lived! Everybody wants me to be _that _person… but… what's wrong with me just being _me_? I don't feel comfortable enough with anybody to dance that way…"

"I like you just fine the way you are, Harry…" Hermione patted his shoulder gently, before a snicker issued forth. "And like I said before, why not ask the couch? I'm sure it would have no objections."

"Brilliant idea, Hermione! Instead of stepping on somebody's toes, I'd be hitting them with a _couch_ instead!" Harry scowled for a moment, attempting to cover up what humor he had seen in the joke. It wasn't like Hermione to kid around with him in such a way. 'I must look _horrid_ if _Hermione_'s cracking jokes…"

Smiling, the girl gently rubbed his shoulder. "It's not so bad, Harry… At least you'd have something to protect you from the rabid flock of girls trying to get a piece of you."

"That _is_ true…" he admitted to himself. Hermione had let go of him. Strangely enough, he didn't feel uncomfortable when she did that. Had it been anybody else though, Harry would've been as uncomfortable as Professor Snape when faced with shampoo. "Hermione…" he said slowly, trying to convince himself of what he was _really_ going to say.

"Hm? What is it, Harry?" She focused her deep, brown eyes on him with a genial look on her face.

"Well… I was thinking… y-you don't seem too worried about the Yule Ball… Do… you have a date?"

"Oh, heavens no, Harry." Hermione burst into a fit of laughter. Once she had calmed down, she said, "No, Harry… Nobody's asked me yet, and I'm fine with that. To be completely honest, I wasn't planning on going, even if I _was _asked. The Yule Ball's just not something I feel any compelling desire to attend." And it was the truth. Hermione Jane Granger would _not _attend the Yule Ball. It was as simple as that.

There was no ulterior motive behind Harry's question… He was just curious as to why his best friend wasn't stressed about the Ball, whereas everyone else, including himself was quite visibly shaken by it. "Well… If you don't mind me asking, what would you be _doing_ while the Ball is happening?"

"Nothing, I would assume… I would probably just sit around and do some leisure reading." She shrugged her shoulders and retrieved her newspaper, once again resuming her reading.

"Hey, Hermione… well… I was, eh… I was wondering…"

She cut him off with a rather flat voice, "No, Harry." The girl sighed, as she closed her eyes, and placed her newspaper aside again. "I do _not_ want to go to the Ball… I mean, I'm flattered that you would ask _me_ of all people, but I just don't want to go."

"B-But…"

She stared at Harry for a moment, trying to decipher the look on his face. It was a look of pleading and sorrow. But… once Hermione Jane Granger had made up her mind, it was _not _going to change. So instead, she looked away, and stared into the fire crackling gently in the fireplace.

Harry scooted a tiny bit closer to Hermione's chair and spoke softly, with a hint of shame in his voice. "I-I wasn't going to ask you that, Hermione… I'm sorry."

Raising an eyebrow, she cocked her head a bit, to glance at him from the corner of her eye. 'Intriguing… I could've sworn he'd ask me… Well, at least he won't be sore that I said no. I don't have a date, and I don't want one.'

"I was…" He swallowed, and nervously fidgeted with his hands. "I was wondering if… if maybe _I _could join _you_…"

Shock was clearly written across her face as the Brightest Witch of her Age was reduced to staring, dumbfounded, at her friend.

"I-I mean, I understand if you don't want me to, but… I _really _don't want to go, and… I figured that instead of being alone at the Ball…" Harry blushed a bit, realizing what he sounded like. "It's not like… I want to… you know… make a move on you… I'd just feel better if I knew I had a relaxed evening ahead of me, instead of going to the Yule Ball." After a moment of subdued silence, he said, "I-I won't bother you, I promise! I'd… I'd feel much more comfortable, without all those people judging me so critically…"

"Harry…" Hermione's tone was strange… somewhere between sympathy, pride, hope, and elation all at once. "Of _course_ you can join me… I… I understand that you don't feel so comfortable with such open displays of affection. I'm not so fond of them myself… I'm much more comfortable with a calm evening by the fire."

Harry scooted closer to Hermione and tentatively put his arms around her. The hug made him feel ever so vulnerable, both to himself and to Hermione. "Thank you, Hermione… This means more to me than you can ever imagine." He quickly let go, feeling awkward, his face quite obviously red from blushing.

"No need to worry about it, Harry. I mean, I _am _your friend… It's not like I'm going to _force _you to do something that makes you feel so bad about yourself…" The girl grinned, a devious light coming into her eyes, "_However_… You _could _use the time to catch up on your assignments."

Harry blanched for a moment, before noticing that the girl was shaking with laughter. "Ha bloody ha, Hermione…" he said, scowling to hide his mirth.

The two entered into a fit of hysterical laughter, ringing throughout the Common Room.

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**Author's Notes**: If you want, I could add another chapter. I already have an idea for it, but it's up to you guys. I don't believe it will become anything lengthy though… Maybe just another chapter. Two if I _really_ milk it for all it's worth. Please leave me a review… I'd like that very much. Thanks in advance, if you got this far in the story! 


	2. The Boy Beneath the Legend

**Foreword**: I didn't get many reviews, but the three that I did absolutely brightened my day! Thanks a bunch, all of you! It means a lot to me! I decided to add another chapter, since some people had decided to read this… so here we go.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to any of this. I wish I did… I also wish I owned the rights to David Bowie… If I owned both, Harry Potter would've ended _quite _differently… heheh.

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Ron Weasly glanced over at Harry, noting the satisfied look on his face. He had started acting this way since the beginning of the week, and Ron wasn't sure what to make of it. "Hey Harry… The Ball's gonna start in an hour… Shouldn't you get ready?"

Instead of answering, the young man's head dipped closer to the table, as he scribbled furiously on a piece of parchment. From what Ron could see, it was their Potions essay. Had Ron bothered to care, he'd have noticed that Harry had been working meticulously on his homework all week… Hermione hadn't nagged him _once_… But Ron was another story.

"Did you hear about Krum?" Ron asked, after eliciting no response from his friend. "I heard he asked Hermione to the Yule Ball…"

"Hm, he did?" Harry's brow furrowed, and he looked up at Ron, trying to remain as stone-faced as possible, though inside, he had quite a bit of turmoil flaring up. After a moment of thinking, he shook his head imperceptibly, and thought, 'No way she'd accept… She promised, and Hermione has _never _gone back on her word before.'

"Yeah! I can't believe she turned him down so _easily_ though… She must have one hell of a date… I mean, I heard she looked at him and actually _laughed _in his face!" Bursting into laughter, Ron continued, "Malfoy tried to say she was goin' with another girl, but Hermione gave him one of the worst verbal beatings he's ever had… Somethin' about Malfoy standin' a _little _too close to Crabbe and Goyle… if ya catch my drift."

Feeling extremely pleased with Hermione, Harry grinned, and said, "I'm sure that went over well with Malfoy… I'll bet the rumors are flying like mad."

The redhead got up from his chair, tugging viciously at his antiquated robes. "Well mate, I'll see ya down there… I've got to pick up my date." Ron rolled his eyes, muttering, "Women…"

"No, you won't, Ron. I told you already… I'm not going to the Yule Ball." Harry's emerald eyes glinted merrily in the fire, with a smile on his face.

"You still sticking with that story? I figured it was to keep the girls away from you, man. You were almost drowned in a sea of 'em earlier." Ron, obviously thinking it was a joke, returned the look and chuckled a bit, "Come on, mate, nobody around here to fool." Harry's gangly friend grinned saying, "But then again, some of those girls are absolute nutters… Never know who's hiding around the corner."

"I'm dead serious, Ron. I'm not going to the Yule Ball." The fact that Harry couldn't keep a straight face did nothing to impress the seriousness of his statement. He was intensely happy with himself, as he would be able to spend a relaxing, low-key evening, away from the pretentiousness and drama that was sure to run rampant in the Great Hall.

"I got ya, mate." Ron winked obviously at Harry, and said, "Looks like you'll be missin' out on all the fun." He then retreated from the Common Room, still fidgeting with his dress robes. As he headed towards his destination, he smirked and said, "Oh… there's no doubt about it. He's _definitely _going…"

Harry continued diligently working on his homework, making absolute sure that he was making no mistakes. He continued his work, as the last few people exited the Gryffindor Common Room, leaving him alone with his work.

A few minutes of pure silence followed. There was still about an hour before the Ball officially started, but everyone had already gathered in the Great Hall, filled with anxiousness at the coming events. However, Harry had a distinct feeling of composure circulating through his body… He didn't have to deal with any of it.

The silent atmosphere was shattered, by the light squeal of the Fat Lady's portrait swinging open. Hermione strode into the Common Room, and shot her friend a warm smile, "Hello, Harry."

"Hi, Hermione." Harry quickly glanced down at his essay, and scratched down a few final words, before rolling it up and putting it away. The young man motioned with his finger, silently asking for her to give him a moment, which he used to put away all of his homework.

Eyeing him suspiciously, the girl folded her arms and pointedly said, "What was that all about?"

"I… just finished my homework… I wasn't sure if you were serious… You know, about the whole 'catching up' thing… I didn't want to take any chances." His face went slightly red under his friend's critical stare. Harry struggled to look down at his feet, but once he had made eye contact, there was no breaking it.

Suddenly, her countenance brightened, and she exclaimed, "Oh, Harry, I'm so proud of you!" She clapped her hands together with joy and her eyes sparkled. "I wasn't _seriously_ going to force you to do your school work, but it _is _a good thing that you've done it!"

Harry smiled appreciatively and trudged to the couch. The same one he had been occupying when he and Hermione had made their plans those few days ago. "Hermione… I wanted to thank you for this… I mean, you didn't have to do this for me, but I'm really glad you did." He stretched out on the couch and gazed into the mesmerizing fire dancing in the hearth.

"It's no trouble at all, Harry. I _told _you, I didn't plan on going to the Yule Ball in the first place… It's just a silly dance, and an opportunity for hormone-driven children to let everything _but _their brains do the thinking." The girl tucked her legs under her, as she sat in the large, comfortable chair nearest the couch, and cracked open a thick book.

The pair existed in an atmosphere of relaxing tranquility, with only the soft glow of the fireplace casting light in the Common Room, flames occasionally crackling.

This was the type of thing that Harry was much more used to. In fact, he strove for times like this. The subdued ambiance in the room helped to sooth the many doubts and discrepancies swirling around in the young man's head.

The girl nervously glanced up from the book, and looked at her friend. "Er, Harry…?" Hermione said, with a touch of uncertainty in her voice.

"Yeah?"

"I've been pouring over this book all day, well, _many _books, but I can't seem to find out any information about what your next task could possibly be." She bit her lower lip for a moment, then said, "Do… Do you have any ideas or thoughts on what you might be facing?"

"I'm… not sure, Hermione… If you can't figure it out, I've no doubt in my mind that I couldn't." He shook his head, and stared straight up at the ceiling, feeling slightly uncomfortable with the mention of his next task. "I don't want to sound mean, but… Can we not talk about that? I'm sorta nervous about it… I… I managed to pass the first task on luck… I'm not sure how long that's going to hold up, Hermione… I'm actually _scared_ about all of this…" He wasn't lying down any more. Harry had shifted into a sitting position, once more cradling his head between his hands, as if trying to hide his shame.

Her heart really went out to him… Hermione knew the pressures that he was subject to, and she realized that deep down, he was just another fourteen year old boy. She fluidly set her book down, and took a place on the couch right next to him. Though the bookish girl hesitated at first, her awkwardness was overridden by Harry's need, and she tenderly placed an arm around him, enveloping him in a half-hug. "It's alright, Harry… It's quite alright… I know how hard you're trying. You're _allowed _to be afraid… You're only human. Some people may not think so, but I _know _that you are… You've nothing to be ashamed of…"

"I-It's hard sometimes… So hard… It's like… Everybody's expecting something from me. They all want a piece of me, but… but nobody's ever willing to stand up to help me… They never want to support me." Hermione felt his whole body deflate as he let out a heaving sigh. "I… I wish people weren't so two-faced."

The girl gave him a squeeze and tightened her grip on his shoulder for a moment, to transmit the physical reassurance she meant to show. "I know what you mean, Harry… But don't worry… I can promise you that I'll always support you… Just like I always have. Ron, Sirius, Dumbledore… You have plenty of people on your side Harry. We'll always be there when you need us to be…" She felt him relax, his previous tenseness melting away as she continued her encouragement. "A-And I'm always available to talk…" she added with a blush, "i-if you ever need to… you know, vent like this again."

He shakily nodded his head, as she let go of him. "I-I'm sorry, Hermione… I'm not supposed to break down like that. I just feel like I could fall asleep right here… I… I don't want to be alone right now."

"Go ahead and lie down, Harry," Hermione murmured soothingly.

"B-But you're…"

"I don't mind, Harry. I'll just stay up and read. Don't worry about me." Her smile always knew how to pinpoint any defense or logic that Harry had, and completely dissect it, leaving nothing more than a mangled barricade that was flimsy enough to fall on its own.

The Boy-Who-Lived nodded, and stretched out on the couch, resting his head on Hermione's thigh. Almost the exact moment that his eyes closed, he seemed to drift off into his own little world of peaceful slumber.

So as not to disturb his sleep, Hermione carefully placed her hand on his head, gently stroking his hair as he slept. It was just something to kill time, as she idly read page after page from the thick tome resting in her lap. 'Hm… The Ball should be starting right about now…' the girl thought, as she glanced down at her watch. 'But I'm glad I decided to stay here instead… I know I would've had an awful time at the Yule Ball… instead, I can have a nice, relaxing evening with a close friend.'

A honest smile graced her face as she continued her studies, stroking Harry's thick mat of black hair.

"Miss Granger… Why aren't you at the Yule Ball?" Minerva McGonagall's stiff voice came from the direction of the Fat Lady's portrait. When she entered the Common Room, she was shocked to see Harry dozing on Hermione. "I-I don't know what to say, but _see here_!"

"Professor… It's my fault…" Hermione glanced down at her sleeping friend, glad that he hadn't been disturbed by their voices, since the pair were talking softly. "Harry's… not feeling well… He's been really stressed out lately and… and we thought that it would do him some good to stay in tonight…"

"But it is _customary _for the champions to open the Yule Ball with a dance!" insisted McGonagall. "Harry's presence is mandatory! While _you _are not _required _to go, I would feel much better if you were there as well, Miss Granger."

"Professor… He's… really, he's having trouble with this. Harry's… he's really nervous about the tournament, and… and he was almost frightened to death by the thought of having to go to the Yule Ball." Hermione's eyes were a swirl of honest pleading, and sheer sympathy, as she switched her stare from McGonagall, to Harry, and back again. The studious girl brushed some hair out of her face, and implored, "Please, Professor… Let Harry have some rest…"

The Professor's face softened and she looked at the pair with fondness, "I see… Thank you for bringing this to my attention, Miss Granger… And thank you for being such a good friend to Mister Potter. It's times like these when one _needs_ good friends to help keep them sane." She turned around to leave, but looked back, once she reached the portrait again, "Sometimes, Miss Granger, it takes just as much, if not _more_, courage to support your friends in their time of need as it does to face the trials such as these… And _that_, I would assume, is why you are a true Gryffindor… I'm proud of the both of you." Having said her peace, Professor McGonagall exited, presumably returning to the Yule Ball, to chaperone the event.

Harry shifted onto his side, his cheek pressed against Hermione's leg. He was sleeping like the dead. The only indications that Hermione had that he was alive were the feel of his warm breath on her leg, through her pants, and the rising and falling of his chest.

Blushing, Hermione laid her hand on his head once more and gently stroked his hair. "Just you rest, Harry… You deserve it."

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Well… That about does it. I _may_ add another chapter, but I'm not so sure yet… I'm sorta running low on ideas right now, haha. I really need a compass, because I'm lost, in this case, when it comes to direction. It's all up to you guys though. If you want me to try and press forward, I'll do my best. 


	3. The Cracked Mask

**Foreword**: Thanks for reviewing the last chapter. It certainly makes my writing and I feel appreciated. I'm going to try and clear up a few things I might have grazed over in the previous chapter. Hope you all like it!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to any of this, unfortunately… However, thankfully, I am able to write this… It's all I can do to ignore the ending of Book Seven.

Hermione's eyes snapped open as she heard the portrait of the Fat Lady groan in protest as it swung open slowly. 'I must've dozed off for longer than I'd have expected to…' She glanced at her watch, realizing that the Yule Ball was officially over, and that students would be returning to their Common Rooms. The weight of his head, and Harry's steady breathing across her leg let her know that the young man was still soundly asleep. 'He must have been absolutely worn down…'

"I can't believe Harry lied to me! He didn't even _show up!_ Why wouldn't he just tell me?! I mean, I'm his best mate! How can you just ignore you're mate like that?!" The angry, shrill voice of Ron echoed from the entrance to the Common Room. "Don't get me wrong, it was a fun time, but how could he hang me out to dry like that? I'm gonna have words with him over this…"

"Ah, don't sweat it, Ron… At least ye had girl's noticin' yeh," Seamus said, through his distinctly Irish accent. "Harry's pro'ly got a good reason for not showin' up."

Frowning, the redhead folded his arms and muttered, "Yeah… well he bloody _better_…" After a moment of sulking, Ron mused to himself, "Huh… I didn't see Hermione there either… I figured she'd have been there… I mean, why would you turn down _Viktor Krum _of all people, and then _not _go? Mental, that one…"

"Uhh… Ron…" Seamus sharply elbowed Ron in the ribs, and pointed in Harry and Hermione's direction.

"What was that for?!" Ron barked at Seamus, before he noticed that the boy was pointing towards the fire place. With dread, he shifted his body, until he was greeted by the spectacle of Harry using Hermione as a pillow. Not to mention the fact that the girl's face was flushed, with a complimentary "deer in the headlights" look plastered on her countenance. Ron was completely dumbfounded… He opened and closed his mouth, attempting to speak, however no words managed to form.

She quickly assessed the situation, and used her sharp wit to dream up a plausible excuse for the current situation. Not wanting to wake Harry, the girl placed a finger to her lips, effectively silencing the two bystanders. Speaking very softly, Hermione said, "Ron, Harry isn't feeling well…"

"Yeah, I bet he bloody well isn't!" Ron said, straining his voice to the limits of a whisper. "Right now, I'm too tired to deal with this bloody mess, but in the morning, Harry's going to be in for it… I can't believe he would _lie _to me like that!" Ron pointed at the pair and said, "And then I see _this!_" He stormed towards the stairs, and said, "He bailed out on me! On the entire school! We were missing a _champion!_ How good of an impression does _that _make?"

"I'm just gonna… You know…" Seamus said quietly, excusing himself from the situation, feeling extremely awkward.

"Well, Ron, in case you haven't noticed, Harry didn't _want _any of this to happen!" Hermione scoffed at her friend's statement and continued, "Besides, apparently _you _had the fancy of a plethora of girls… What are _you _complaining about?"

"That ain't the point, Hermione! Do you know how embarrassing it is when somebody asks where your best mate is, and you have absolutely _no_ idea?" Ron jabbed an accusatory finger towards the pair again, and said, "And then I find you _here_… I can understand _you _not going, but… I never expected you two to do something like _th-_"

"Ronald, do you _really _want to finish that sentence?" Hermione said, in a dangerously calm voice. The annoyance was clearly painted on her voice as she glared at the redhead with unbridled fury. She refused to break eye contact, even when Harry shifted from his position on the couch, unconsciously seeking a more comfortable position.

Inwardly, Ron cringed, knowing that he had gone a _tad _too far. Blanching, he stumbled backwards towards the Boy's dormitory, and managed to flash a scowl at Hermione, albeit a weak one.

She let out an exasperated sigh, and forcefully returned to her book, though her eyes kept wandering to Harry, who had been peacefully sleeping through the entire exchange. Though she knew it was an unconscious thing, Hermione realized that she hadn't stopped stroking his hair. "Ronald is such a _git _sometimes… I don't know how you always seem to put up with it."

Hermione chuckled a bit, "Of course I do… You're friends… It's what you _do_…" She sighed and closed her book, fully knowing that she was not able to concentrate on it. Instead, she took to simply talking to the unconscious form of Harry. "I'm glad I managed to do you a favor like this. Although, I'm sure you'd have performed admirably at the Yule Ball… and probably would have had ladies by the score." She felt color rising in her cheeks, as her mind made an idle comment, 'He's… rather handsome when he's at peace like this…'

Mentally slapping herself, she extricated herself from the boy. 'What? What's so wrong? I… I'm allowed to think that somebody happens to be looking particularly handsome at any given point in time.' She closed her eyes, turning her face towards the ceiling, and breathed in deeply, to calm her nerves. "I… think it's time for bed… I _should _wake Harry, but… he needs his sleep." Hermione gathered her book in her arms and muttered, "And certainly _I _do when I start allowing my mind to wander… _Handsome_, honestly?! What would possess me to say something so idiotic and irrational?"

She stopped in her tracks and murmured back to herself, arguing with her own voice, "Well, I just so happen to believe that he _is _handsome… so for once, you can feel free to shut up, Miss Logical." Brushing a few curly locks of hair from her face, she lamented, "Now I _really _know I'm losing it… Talking to myself in the middle of the Common Room… Ugh."

As she began to ascend the steps, she tempted the fates, by casting one last glance towards Harry. For a moment, what was happening didn't register in her brain, due to her current state of exhaustion. However, once the image was branded into her head, Hermione was instantly alert. Faster than a flash of lightening, she was at Harry's side, watching him writhe in pain, clutching at his scar.

"Ha-Harry! Wake up! _Wake up!_" she cried, attempting to shake him awake. "Harry, please! You're really scaring me!"

Letting out a rumbling moan, Harry continued to clutch at his scar, tears visibly streaking down his face. His voice was projecting painful whimpering as he continued to shake uncontrollably.

Reaching out, with no hesitation, Hermione gathered him up in her arms, firmly hugging him to her body. "Shh," she soothingly cooed into his ear, "Everything will be alright, Harry… I'm here for you… Don't worry about anything…"

The young hero's eyes snapped open, and he fervently hugged Hermione back, clutching her as if his entire existence depended upon it. His skull felt ready to split open entirely, and he felt as though searing tendrils of molten metal had been dragged across his forehead.

"Shh… It's alright, Harry… You're safe here… I promise, I won't let anything happen to you…"

"H-Hermione… I… I felt _him_…" he said breathily, shakily inhaling, only to raggedly exhale moments later. "He's… he's happy about _something_…"

Hermione simply gently ran her hand over his back, trying to be as soothing as possible. "It was just a dream, Harry… You're safe… We'll talk to Professor Dumbledore in the morning, and get this all straightened out. If anybody can help, surely it's him, Harry."

"Y-Yeah… you're right…"

"Of course, I'm right… After all, I _am _Know-It-All Granger." She smirked a bit at the name she had been called countless times, hoping it would at least bring a smile to his face… It would be worth all the insults she had suffered under just for that usual grin to show itself on her friend's face.

"I-I don't think you're a Know-It-All… You just happen to be smart…" There was sadness lacing together the greenness of his irises as he pulled back a bit to stare into Hermione's deep, brown eyes.

Giving him one final squeeze, the bookish girl murmured, "Thanks, Harry… that means a lot to me." She let go and backed away from him a bit, allowing the fourth champion some space, before saying, "Are… you _sure _you're okay?"

He only nodded, though quite hesitantly. He had broken into a cold sweat, and was unable to shake the feeling of impending doom on the horizon, though, once again, he decided to put up a brave front, in the hopes of fooling Hermione. But deep down, he was only trying to trick himself.

"Hm… alright, Harry, if you insist… Perhaps we should both get some sleep…" She reluctantly turned around, and took a step towards the Girls' Dormitory.

"Stay with me… Please… don't go…"

Hermione felt her hand being held onto, Harry's clammy hand shaking with fear. Everything about him was saturated in terror, down to his very core.

Taken aback by his response, she stammered a bit, "Y-Yes, of course, Harry…" After a moment, she returned to the couch, cradling his head in her lap, as he curled up to her as closely as possible. She just didn't care. She didn't care what the others would think. Harry was more important to her than anything that anybody could say.

"I… I don't want to be alone… I'm… I'm afraid, Hermione."

"I understand." She began to stroke his hair once more, and said, "There's nothing to be ashamed of… I'm here for you… You don't have to worry. Just get some rest…"

Hermione was there for Harry because of who they were to each other… They were friends, an important factor in life. She did her best to keep him comfortable in his most troubling of times.

And it was just that… An issue of comfort.

**Author's** **Notes**: There you have it… A miserably short chapter, but I had to end it there, for the sake of art, haha. I have decided to make this longer, because I've somehow managed to garner positive feedback… which is good! I like feedback… speaking of feedback, don't feel bad about leaving me a review.


	4. Silence is Golden

**Foreword**: Thanks everybody! I'm glad to say that you've all made my day great. I'm glad I got so many positive reviews. I wasn't exactly sure how it was going to go when I started, and you've all given me the courage to press on. Perhaps this will end up being a lengthy work… Also, I try to respond to every review I get. If I don't, please don't be offended! It must have just slipped my mind.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to the characters or settings used in this story… so please don't sue me for what little I'm worth. Thank you for your time.

Soft rays of sunlight crept through the windows of the Gryffindor Common Room, stealing across the floor, before finally resting upon the slumbering figures of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger.

Always one to rise with the sun, and more often than not, _before _the sun, Hermione's eyes instantly snapped open. Regarding her surroundings, she recalled the events of last night, including Ron's intrusion, Harry's dreams, and quite certainly the position they had ended the night in. Feeling him clutching onto her fervently, Hermione couldn't help but smile. Succumbing to the urge, she gently ran her fingers through his hair, and leaned over to retrieve his glasses from the low table near the couch. "Harry… Harry, it's dawn." Attempting to shake him awake, Hermione noted that her efforts were all but working and crossly said, "We should be getting _up_ now."

Harry, quite disoriented, quickly let go of his friend, his face flushing bright red. Stammering unintelligibly, he frantically groped around the table for his glasses.

Sighing, and rolling her eyes, Hermione held up his glasses and shoved them onto Harry's face. "Honestly… _do _try to keep up, Harry... and use proper grammar. I can't understand whatever it is you're babbling." Despite her best efforts, the studious girl allowed herself a smirk at his disheveled appearance.

Sheepishly, Harry retreated to the opposite side of the couch, where he sat perfectly still for a time. "Um… Thanks for keeping me company, Hermione… I know I wasn't great at keeping a conversation, but… Well, I blame that on a slight case of sleep." He unleashed an unusually upbeat smile, surprising both himself _and _his friend.

Hermione nodded understandingly, and said, "So can I leave you alone now? Will you be okay, Harry?" Staring intently into his sea-green eyes, the muggle-born witch attempted to discern what he was truly feeling.

"No… I think I'm alright, Hermione." Harry nodded for a minute, but frantically shook his head moments after, saying, "Not that I'm trying to rush you away from me or something like that. I just… I think I can handle myself for a while."

Again, she rolled her eyes, looking at him with a raised eyebrow. "Harry, I knew what you meant… I'm not an idiot." She began to head towards the Girl's Dormitory, and looked back at him as she went, "And don't apologize _again_… I _know _you didn't mean it to insinuate that I'm stupid."

Harry's mouth instantly shut, as if the words had been directly stolen from his mouth. "Well… should I wait for you? I figured we'd head to breakfast together." Scratching at his tousled hair, he shrugged, and continued, "I mean, it's not like there's much else to do." He grinned at her, mirth openly displayed, "I can't even do my homework, since a _certain somebody _coerced me into doing it early."

"But isn't it so nice to know that you don't have to scramble to get it done, Harry?" Hermione reciprocated his look, and said, "Just go on ahead without me… I'm going to freshen up a bit before I come down." Brushing some of her curly locks away from her face, the Gryffindor girl smirked, saying, "And knowing how long it takes you to finish a meal, I've no doubt that I'll be down before you leave."

"Alright, I'll see you in a bit then," Harry said as he strode out into the cool hallways of Hogwarts Castle. He mentally thanked Hermione, as she had awoken him at a time when everyone else was likely asleep, so that he wouldn't have to deal with all of the disapproving glares, and hushed whispers once he entered a room. Instead, he'd be able to simply eat breakfast in the Great Hall, albeit alone. "I have a good feeling about today," he whispered with a smile, energetically stepping his way down the stone staircases of the castle.

His mood took a dive, as he entered the Great Hall, seeing none other than Severus Snape, sporting an ever-present scowl on his face. 'Th-That's alright… I can ignore him. At least there's nobody else here.' Harry breathed in deeply, and tried his best to sneak his way to the Gryffindor table under the glare of the cold, calculating, black irises of Professor Snape.

"Potter," Snape said in a dangerously low voice, "Get over here. Now." Snape, obviously, was feeling chipper. Harry felt his stomach sink to his heels as he noted the sadistically amused look on his Potions Professor's face.

Reluctantly, the Boy-Who-Lived made his way up to the front of the Great Hall, stopping when he reached the elevated pedestal that the teachers were usually stationed at during important ceremonies. The last thing Harry wanted to do was get closer to Snape, especially with such a look his face.

"Well, well… if it isn't our _champion_, Harry Potter…" Snape took particular care to seemingly spit out the last three words of the sentence, as though they left an awful taste in his mouth. "I couldn't help but notice that you were… shall we say, _absent_ from yesterday's festivities."

"_You _were there?" Harry said, incredulity clearly voiced in his words. He had spoken without thinking. Something he would quite learn to regret, as he saw an ugly snarl forming on the man's face.

"Detention, Potter," he growled, "Be in my office at seven… You'll be spending quite some time with me, over the course of the year. Tournament or not."

Letting out a long sigh, Harry nodded, "Yes, Professor… I'll see you after dinner." Mentally kicking himself as hard as he could, Harry turned around, to dejectedly trudge his way to the Gryffindor table.

"I'm not quite finished with you, Potter." That was it. He was dead. No avoiding it now. Snape was going directly for the jugular vein. "You have the… _privilege_ of copying down every single detention that your _heroic _father had accumulated over his seven year stay at Hogwarts… Please do enjoy it. I'm sure it's as close as you'll _ever_ be to him."

Harry instantly turned around, eyes narrowing in hatred as he fixed them on the snide professor. Pure, unadulterated rage seemed to emanate from Harry as his ire rose, eliciting the pent up fury hidden beneath his commonly calm exterior. He took a few steps back towards the Potions Master and opened his mouth to shout at the darkly dressed man.

Though he tried his hardest to scream his brains out at the man, he found that absolutely nothing would come out. He was mute.

Snape looked past Harry, fastening an infinitely amused stare upon another person. "Twenty points fr-"

"Ah, not to sound rude, Severus, but there are no House Points this year. Excellent timing, Miss Granger…" Dumbledore's calm voice rang out in the mainly empty Hall. He took his seat at the middle of the staff table, and beamed at the girl. "Brilliant use of the silence charm! It is an ever-useful spell… especially when certain things are best gone unheard." The old man pointedly glanced at Harry for a moment, impressing the severity of what would've happened had his temper gone unchecked.

Hermione blushed, and put away her wand after removing the charm, a mixture of shame and elation on her face. "Er… Yes, Professor Dumbledore."

Harry, still fuming from Snape's comments, folded his arms angrily, before stalking towards the Gryffindor Table.

Dumbledore called out to the boy, saying, "Oh, Harry… I'm sure that Professor Snape has a few words to say to you." Again, the aged man shot a pointed look towards Slytherin's Head, and raised his eyebrows slightly.

Reluctantly, Snape said, "Very well… Potter, no detention." The man quickly stood up, in an attempt to escape from his current situation, but was only greeted by a furious stare from Harry, and an expectant cough from his superior. Knowing that he had been pushed into a corner, and couldn't get around it, Snape muttered a quick and almost unintelligible apology, before excusing himself from the table.

"Well that was rather rude of him." Dumbledore also stood up, and said, "If you'll excuse me, Mister Potter, Miss Granger, I must be seeing my good friend Dobby about breakfast… If you'd like, I'll say hello for you." He genially smiled at both Harry and Hermione as he waited for an answer.

"Er… Yes, of course… Say hello to Dobby for me." Harry was rather taken aback by Snape's apology and even more by Dumbledore's actions, leaving him somewhat stunned. His anger at Snape had dissipated, as the shock of the current state of affairs was more than enough to temporarily make him forget it.

Hermione nodded happily and said, "I would like that very much as well, Professor Dumbledore."

"As you wish," Dumbledore smiled and gracefully headed towards the Professor's exit, just past the Staff table. Before he reached the portal, he turned around with a sweep and said, "Ah… and before I manage to forget in my old age, I would enjoy if the two of you would join me for a chat in my office. Is just before lunch acceptable?"

Exchanging looks, Hermione and Harry slowly managed a nod, as they watched the headmaster leave after exclaiming, "Excellent! I shall see the both of you then."

Dumbfounded, the pair simply stood in the middle of the Great Hall, all alone. Minutes ticked by, and the cadence of birds chirping in the courtyard filtered in through the windows, however Hogwarts was just as still as it had been half an hour earlier.

"Harry…" Hermione said, as the shock wore off. "I-I'm so sor-" Her hair was still damp from the shower that she had just taken, and she seemed to glow in the morning light, though the torn look on her face kept the image from being completed.

He simply shot a sideways look at her, saying nothing. There was nothing malicious in the glance. It was a dispassionate look, but that might have been what most was damaging about it. He was showing absolute neutrality in a situation he had every right to be upset with.

"I-I just didn't want you to say something you might have regretted…" She bit her lower lip for a pensive moment, saying, "You have every right to be angry with me, Harry. I'm so-"

Harry simply stepped closer to her, his own face merely inches from Hermione. Without saying anything he quietly slipped his arms around her, and gently embraced her for a moment.

As he let go, and stepped back, the pair made eye contact. Before Harry even vocalized his thoughts, his eyes spoke for him. They said, "You did the right thing, Hermione."

**Author's Note**: Well… There's Chapter four. I hope it was up to your standards. I'd love to hear from you, just click the review button! In case you've been wondering, I _have _taken it upon myself to continue this story for a while… I'm not sure how far I'll get, but I'll do my best. I also try to update daily… not sure how well that'll always work though.


	5. Skewed Stories

**Foreword**: Again, I'd like to take the time to thank everybody who's reviewed, and even those who haven't, and are just enjoying (hopefully) the story. I'm really trying my hardest here, and I hope I'm not disappointing you all. I know it might be torturous, but I do plan on the romantic process taking quite a while with Hermione and Harry.

**Disclaimer**: As always, I don't own the franchise I'm pilfering this story from… I sincerely wish I did, however… That would be sorta cool. And I'd be able to end the story as I saw fit. Just another perk of being an author, haha.

* * *

It was rounding ten o'clock, and still, Harry and Hermione hadn't seen too many people, only the occasional teacher or prefect. Every time the couple passed another person, they were plagued by a variety of looks, some blatantly unfavorable, others a strange combination of relief and sympathy.

"Harry… Is it just me or…" Hermione said, after rounding a corner, having just encountered a Hufflepuff prefect.

"Yeah… I think something's up, Hermione." The young man glanced around the hallway warily, as they made their way back towards the Gryffindor Common Room. He found himself suspicious of even the tiniest motion, and even the shadows cast in the mid-morning light. "They keep looking at us like… like we've been hung in the gallows.

Much to her chagrin, the girl could do nothing about the stares. Instead, she walked a little bit closer to Harry, and spoke in a low voice, so that only he could hear her. "There's nothing stuck in my teeth, is there?"

"Nope, you're good. You always are, Hermione," he chuckled, and brushed his tangled hair away from his forehead. "Besides… They looked more concerned with the fact that we were in the halls, than what state either of us are in. Regardless of how nice you look, compared to me."

Blushing at the unintentional compliment, Hermione said, "Oh, you don't like quite that bad, yourself, Harry…" Pausing for a moment, she attempted to find the correct words to describe his current appearance. "Just a little… disheveled."

Grimacing, the young wizard tugged at his clothing, and glowered at them, "I haven't showered today, my clothes are ripe, and I feel like I've been rolling around in dirt and grime all morning." Fidgeting with his hair, he continued, "Not to mention my hair refuses to cooperate…"

Beaming, Hermione ruffled his hair, and teasingly said, "What _else_ is new, Harry." They began their ascent towards the Fat Lady's Portrait, and Hermione glanced around once more, "Well… since everybody seems incapacitated or otherwise rendered invisible, it seems that you won't have to fight for shower time, as you usually would."

"Glad _somebody_'s chipper this morning…" Mister Potter quickly said the password, and the two entered the deserted Common Room. Once reaching the epicenter of the room, the pair split, and went their separate ways, each to their own different dormitories, each for their own different reasons.

Harry quickly kicked off his shoes, and disrobed down to his necessities, before retrieving a new set of clothing. Pulling a loose fitting robe over himself, Harry tucked the bundle under his arm, and padded his way towards the Common Room again, so that he could get to the showers. As he neared the stairs, he glanced down cautiously for a moment, making sure that nobody was around. After all, who _would _want to be confronted while wearing a robe and the general essentials?

Satisfied that the coast was clear, Harry quickly dashed down into the Common Room, and used his wand to open the sealed passage leading to the Gryffindor Boy's shower room. Right as he placed his things down on one of the wooden benches littered on the floor of the room, Harry felt a pair arms sling over his shoulders. That alone was almost enough to kill him, due to the surprise.

"Hey, Harry." It was horrifying to hear the familiar voice behind him. Harry _knew_ for a _fact_ that he wouldn't escape from this unscathed, physically _or _mentally.

"We figured you'd be all worn out." It was the Weasly Twins, Fred and George.

"What with Hermione and all," The voices said in unison.

Harry shoved his way out of their grasp, and tried his best to calm his heart from the surprise it had suffered. "Wh-What do you mean? Hermione and I just-"

"Oh, we know exactly what you did." Fred… or George… Er, Designated Twin Number One said, with a shrug.

"That Rita Skeeter lady took a stab at the details too… Bit of a smutty version she wrote up though," Designated Twin Number Two finished, with a smirk on his face.

Harry pointed between the two of them and demanded, "Before I even _ask_, which one of you is _which?_"

They sighed in unison, and, still in chorus, said, "Honestly mate. Try to keep up. I'm Fred. He's George."

Pursing his lips, Harry glared at the two of them and folded his arms angrily. "I'm being serious, both of you… Now I don't know what you're up to, but I can guarantee that if you don't play nice, I'll tell Hermione all about it… You _know_ how she gets with all the rules you tend to break."

Nervously, the pair exchanged looks, silently agreeing. Designated Twin Number One spoke, saying, "Alright, mate… no need to pull out the Hermione card… He's George. I'm Fred." Fred leaned towards George and whispered "She's got him on a tight leash, doesn't she… Even has him _reporting _to her…" The two snickered in Harry's direction.

"What are you two talking about, seriously?" Harry slammed his fist against the wall. "I'm tired of everybody 'knowing' _more _about me than _I _do!"

Silently swapping tense looks, the twins finally smiled their usual devious grins, and began to speak in their typical alternating fashion.

"Well, according to Rita Skeeter-"

"The two of you couldn't keep your hands off each other-"

"And barely managed to make it to the couch-"

"Before ripping each other's clothes off-"

"And putting your face-"

"Stop! Stop, stop, _stop!_" Harry shouted, covering his ears in horror.

"You asked!" The pair chimed in unison.

Completely and utterly mortified, Harry stammered, "W-We didn't do anything like _th-that! _I-I was asleep most of the time!"

"We know."

"You… do?" Confused, Harry cocked an eyebrow at the two, and said, "How…?"

"Ron's got a-"

"Gigantic mouth and-"

"We saw it for ourselves."

"While everybody was dancing-"

"We slipped out for a spell-"

"To try and find you."

"Imagine our surprise when-"

"We find you practically shagging Hermione-"

"In the middle of the Common Room even."

Harry set upon them vehemently, "Hermione and I were _NOT _shagging! There was absolutely _NO _skin on skin contact!"

"Oh… we quite know that…" Fred smirked as he remembered how fondly and dutifully Hermione took care of her friend the previous night.

George chuckled and threw an arm around his brother, saying, "We were just having a bit of fun with you, that's all."

After a few minutes of silence passed, Harry said, "Er… do you mind? I'd like to take a shower now…"

"By our estimate, you have about…"

"Hm, thirty minutes, wouldn't you say, Fred?"

"Why yes, I do believe you're right, Fred."

"Fred? No, _I'm_ Fred!"

"Oh, shut up, you crazy git. Stop trying to confuse the poor boy!"

"Fine, I _am _George. It was all _my _idea to spike the punch last night!"

"Oh, no, you don't, Fred! That was all m-"

"Ahem…" Harry coughed rather loudly, getting the attention of the Weasly twins. "If you don't leave, I'm seriously contemplating tossing a few spells in your direction."

"Fine… Fine… We know where we're not wanted…"

"Why, you're quite right, Fred. Although we _both _know we're _always _wanted!"

Harry, thoroughly exasperated with the spastic behavior of the boys, brandished his wand and pointed it at them. "Out, the lot of you!"

After much moaning and complaining, the Boy-Who-Lived managed to force the older boys out of the room, and allowed himself to relax under the warm stream of water issuing forth from the shower spout. 'Those two… They're too much… And that Rita Skeeter, lady…'

Eyes widening, Harry muttered, "Bloody hell… How am I going to deal with _this_?! I've already got enough on my mind as is…" Harry washed furiously, and quickly dried himself off, the remains of his good mood quickly being dragged through the dirt.

Though he was clean, and smelled much better, Harry still felt terrible, as he knew how quickly gossip managed to travel around through Hogwarts. He could easily see the entire student body _thinking _they knew what happened during his time spent with Hermione, rather than at the Yule Ball.

And that terrified him.

Fully dressed, he marched back into the Common Room, glad to see that Hermione was still the only one up, though she looked quite upset. She had the Daily Prophet in her hands, and looked as though she wouldn't pass at an opportunity to break every rule possible to vent her frustration.

"How could _anybody _write such a horrid article?! Honestly! This is absolutely ridiculous! I can not _believe _that such an upstanding and well-known newspaper would actually _publish _such filth, more or less have the _audacity _to make it front page news!" Her anger, finally bettering her normally collected judgment, boiled over, and Hermione began to feverishly rip the Daily Prophet into tiny pieces, before feeding the confetti to the Common Room's fireplace.

"Hermione…" Harry placed a hand on her shoulder, hoping to calm her down, and in effect, calm himself down as well. "I think we should see Professor Dumbledore… Now. I mean it _is _before lunch…"

"I agree," Hermione managed to say through gritted teeth. "And Merlin help that Rita Skeeter woman if I _ever _get my hands on her…" The article had really gotten under Hermione's skin, as her image had been reconstructed into that of a hormonally driven teenager who wouldn't pass up a chance at fame, even through Harry. The fact that Harry had also been slandered was salt in the wounds. The girl was so angry that at any moment, she felt as though she could've burst into tears.

"Hermione," Harry chided, "Just keep calm… No sense in beating ourselves up over spilt milk… I… I don't regret that I was able to spend time with you, last night."

In comfortable silence, the pair exited the Common Room, and made their way towards Professor Dumbledore's office.

"Hey! Hey, Harry, wait up a minute, will you?"

"Cedric?" Harry turned around and was greeted by Cedric Diggory dashing through the halls to catch up with the two.

"Phew… Glad you heard me. Might not've caught you otherwise," he said, holding his sides and sucking in air. "Hey listen… I really need to talk to you… alone, I think… unless you're comfortable with Hermione hearing this too." Cedric warily glanced towards the pre-infuriated girl, and blanched at her expression of open anger.

"Cedric… What's all this about?" The boy with the scar said guardedly, fully intending the Hufflepuff to go off on a tangent about the Daily Prophet's front page.

"Well er…" He faltered for a moment, but regained his confidence, trusting Harry to trust him back. "If I were you, I'd go to the fifth floor, and take a nice long bath… mull things over in the Prefect's bathroom, so nobody disturbs you."

"What do you mean?" Harry had already _had _a bad experience in the shower today, and he didn't quite feel like repeating such an experience. "What are you talking about, Cedric?"

"Look, man…" Glancing around, the sixth-year quietly said, "We'll call this even, okay? Just take that golden egg with you, alright? You'll figure it out from there, I'm sure." He seemed a little awkward for a moment, then turned to Hermione and nodded to her, "Er, sorry to intrude… I just _really _needed to tell Harry about that."

Hermione nodded, quite understanding the situation. To tell the truth, she actually admired Cedric, and also harbored a bit of a crush on him in her first year, before becoming extremely close to Harry and Ron, at which point it promptly faded away, and was written off as a silly infatuation. "To tell the truth, I'm surprised you didn't say anything about… you know, the Daily Prophet…"

"I don't buy into that crap… That old bag's just blowing smoke. I'd like to think I know enough about you two to say that you wouldn't do something like that…" Cedric leaned in towards Harry and said, "By the way, Harry… I want to hear _your _side of the story… I don't want a good guy like yourself to get a bad reputation because of some stupid article a crackpot witch wrote… I'll see you around, man." The Hufflepuff seeker politely excused himself, nodding to both Harry and Hermione, then shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and strode back down the hall from which he came.

"Cedric!" Harry called after him. They made eye contact, and Harry nodded respectfully. "You… You really are Hogwart's true Champion."

* * *

**Author's Notes**: I really like Cedric Diggory… he was a very good character, though he had a very short life. I'm trying to paint a very positive picture of him with this. I do believe that I might end up riding the wave all the way to the end… It might be a while, but at the rate I'm going, hopefully it won't seem too long. I'm not sure if I should end this story after the Fourth Year, and post a new story as a sequel for each year afterwards, or if I should just do everything in this story, and not bother with posting different parts. Please give me some feedback. 


	6. Problems Lost, Complications Gained

**Foreword**: I wasn't terribly impressed by last chapter. In fact, I sorta hated it… I wasn't pleased with it at all. Everything seemed too rushed, which is not what I like to do. I'm awfully sorry about that, everyone who actually reads the foreword.

**Disclaimer**: No… I don't own the rights to Harry Potter, or any of the characters, settings, spells, or other magical things. The only thing I happen to own is an appetite for writing.

* * *

"Licorice?" Dumbledore said, extending a hand towards the two students. After a moment, he changed his mind, and held out his other hand. "Or perhaps you would fancy a lemon drop, instead."

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I'm… not supposed to eat candy. My mum and dad said it's horrid for the teeth." Hermione blushed six shades of red at the mention of her parents, forgetting that the Headmaster was not an elitist man.

"Ah yes! Your parents are what the muggles call 'dentists' are they not?" Dumbledore clapped his hands together enthusiastically, and leaned in towards the pupils in front of his desk.

The girl shifted in her seat, and uncomfortably said, "Er… yes, but Professor-"

"Ah! Yes, I quite see your point, Miss Granger. I'll get down to the point of just _why _I asked for you two to be here." Quickly shifting to complete business, Dumbledore popped the lemon drop into his mouth, and said, "As I'm sure both of you know, the front page of the Daily Prophet was… quite a _sordid _story-"

"P-Professor, we can explain! Honest!" Harry said with a start, stuck in a state of disbelief, as he had expected total support from the Headmaster, rather than a reprimand over a falsified story.

"You did not allow me to finish, Harry… You can't honestly think that such a thing would go unnoticed in this school, do you? There are portraits all over… and all have means to report to me, my dear boy. Besides… I trust that two of my favorite pupils wouldn't do something so rash, and irresponsible." He paused momentarily and then amended his statement and cast a glance towards Hermione with a mirthful grin tucked behind his beard, "Well… at least _one _of you wouldn't do something so rash and irresponsible."

"H-Hey…" It had taken Harry a moment to figure out what Dumbledore had meant, after observing that both Hermione and the Headmaster were fighting back laughter as hard as they could, albeit failing quite miserably.

Hermione reached over across the gap between their chairs, and gently placed her hand on his knee, patting it. "He was just joking, Harry… Don't get all worked up over it."

"Uh, but!" He protested, tensing noticeably, before letting out a sigh, "Oh-_kay_." He visibly relaxed, slouching in the thickly padded chairs Dumbledore provided the two with.

Hermione didn't remove her hand, but simply left it where it was, though Dumbledore couldn't be sure if she had simply forgotten about it, or if he should read into it at all. Instead, he filed the information in the back of his head, and pressed forward with the reason he had brought the pair into his office in the first place. "Such gossip is intolerable, and I'm quite sure that the both of you do not appreciate her interference into your personal lives."

"Let's just say she had best avoid any dark alleyways…" Hermione growled, distain flashing in her brown eyes. She finally removed her hand from Harry, in order to fold her arms angrily.

Dumbledore's eyes flashed with amusement behind his silver framed glasses. "Then I'm sure you don't object with my decision to ban her from Hogwarts' grounds, effective immediately."

Breathing out a massive sigh of relief, Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, gratefully said, "Professor, you have no idea how much this takes off of my shoulders… That's one _huge _distraction gone… Now I just have to deal with the whole surviving thing…"

"You'll be _fine_, Harry… You always are. Give yourself a little bit of credit now and again." Hermione smiled as encouragingly as possible, hoping to lift him out of the usual slump he entered whenever the Triwizard Tournament was mentioned.

"Before an old man forgets, I would like to say that Dobby was quite thankful that you remembered him, and also sends his salutations to 'Harry Potter and his kindly friend Miss Granger'." Eyes twinkling, the old man with a crooked nose smiled at his quirky visit to the kitchens, "It is a good thing to see him enjoying his freedom so fully."

"That's excellent news!" Hermione squealed, sweeping her hair behind her.

Harry also smiled brightly for a time, but eventually, the look tapered off, and he asked, "Professor… You're… not going to punish me for not appearing at the Yule Ball?"

"Harry, my boy, I believe that you were tending to much more important things at the time," Dumbledore glanced around his desk for a moment, distracted as he looked for another lemon drop. After extracting one from the jar of candy, he popped it into his mouth and muttered, "Awfully addicting buggers…" He looked back at Harry and said, "You seemed to be in no condition to go, from what Minerva told me. And Miss Granger's presence, while very much yearned for, was not mandatory… If I'm not mistaken, you managed to keep quite the eye on Harry."

The powerful, yet soft-spoken wizard, winked at Hermione, who immediately stared into her lap, to hide her encroaching blush.

"Friendship is such a beautiful thing… It is far better to cooperate, and to get along, rather than spend time arguing… Something I admit that the two of you have managed to master over the years." He paused and looked pointedly from Harry to Hermione, switching his gaze every few seconds. "However, I do believe that there is a certain person among you who is still having trouble grasping that crucial concept."

The two nodded, understanding that he meant Ron, and waited for Professor Dumbledore to dismiss them.

"Are you sure you wouldn't enjoy a lemon drop?"

"Erm… Yes, perhaps I _will _have one, after all…" Hermione slowly reached forward and plucked the marble sized, yellow candy from Dumbledore's outstretched hand. "I-I can always brush my teeth again later," she added hastily, as if trying to appease the ideals of her parents.

"Ah, very good, Miss Granger! It's good to be hygienic, but sometimes it's perfectly acceptable to indulge." Dumbledore flashed the two an amiable smile and gestured with his hands, "Feel free to stop in any time you'd like. You may go now."

Hermione glanced sideways at Harry, and leaned towards him, whispering, "Harry… Tell him about your dream… Now is the perfect opportunity, Harry."

"I had forgotten about that… Thanks, Hermione." Harry cleared his throat, and began to speak, but saw, from his peripheral vision, his friend stand up from her chair and begin to leave. "Profes- Er… Hermione? Where are you going?"

"Oh, I figured you wouldn't want me here whilst you discussed this with Professor Dumbledore." She said it as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Um… Well, do you think you could, you know…?" Harry motioned towards her seat with his shoulder, and gestured with his head.

Dumbledore folded his hands in front of him and sagely said, "I believe Harry wishes for you to stay, Miss Granger, as he so succinctly and clearly put it."

The brunette shrugged and sat back down, placing the lemon drop she had received from Dumbledore into her mouth. As she waited quietly, she worked the hard candy around her tongue, savoring the tart sweetness of the lemon sphere.

"Well, Professor, last night, I er… sort of had a dream…"

"Sort of?" Dumbledore said, listening intently, clearly in Red Alert mode.

"That's the strange thing, Professor. It wasn't _exactly_ like a dream. This felt too…" Struggling for words, Harry thought of what to say for a moment, before grimly continuing with the story, "too real. It was like I was _actually _experiencing it."

"What, may I ask, did these visions portray?" Dumbledore had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, and gravely said, "Did they affect you in any way?"

Harry nodded, and stammered, but couldn't manage to get a response out. The magnitude of what he experienced was overwhelming. How could he be expected to summarize it into a few sentences in a few seconds? That was almost unfair…

Fed up with Harry's hesitance, Hermione answered instead, "His scar, Professor… Harry said that his scar was hurting very badly, like fire on his skin."

"I-It felt like… Voldemort was _happy_. He was… He was happy about _something_." His voice was dangerously faint, as he paled at the memory of the nightmare. "It was sickening…"

Hermione moved towards, him and knelt next to his chair, placing a loose hug around him, gently rubbing his back, "It's all right, Harry… Everything's okay. You're safe here, remember?"

"Y-Yeah… Thanks, Hermione." Harry mentally chastised himself for allowing himself to show such weakness over such a trivial thing as a dream. 'She must think I'm completely incapable of doing anything, at this point.

"This is most disturbing." Dumbledore's face was set like stone, carved into a stern, grave bust of an elderly man. "Harry, it is with the utmost of urgency that I implore you to _always _inform me of any such dreams that you have. It is times like these, in your darkest hours, when friends become the bastions of hope and fortitude, as Miss Granger has."

Hermione waited until Harry had calmed down, before letting go of him. As a friend, it was her job to protect Harry, the person. Harry, the Boy-Who-Lived needed no such protecting, as he was quite skilled with magic, but just Harry, the fourteen year old boy, who had lost his parents, who had no friends growing up, who had to deal with being thrust into fame, was the person that Hermione cared deeply for.

Harry nodded, and said, "I will, Professor… but don't hold it against me if I hope I never experience another one of those nightmares again."

"It would be better for you if you didn't, Harry… I also hope that you are never subject to such a thing again…" The bespectacled old man's face softened, with a smile from under his beard, "Just as I, foolishly, hoped that you would manage to stay out of trouble this year."

"Well, you know me… I have a nose for all sorts of trouble… just like dad did…" Harry smiled proudly as he thought of James Potter, his personal hero. Though Harry was thoroughly sad that he didn't have the opportunity to know his parents, he also knew that his father would not have wanted Harry to wallow over it. And so, he had resolved, many years ago, to remember his parents with pride.

"Yes… Yes, James had quite the knack…" Wistful in appearance, Dumbledore nodded lightly. Snapped out of his reveries by the chime of a clock, the renowned wizard said, "Ah! Look at the time… It would be best for the two of you to take your lunches now. I'll be issuing a speech about your current… predicament."

Hermione stared into her lap, and slowly said, "Er… Professor?"

"Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Would it be quite all right if I had… just one more lemon drop?"

Smiling, the old man plucked a lemon drop from his candy jar, and said, "You could very well spoil your lunch at this rate." Dumbledore extended a palm and glanced around for a moment, "However, I'm sure that just _one _more would tide you over for the walk to the Great Hall."

"Thank you, Professor!" Elated, Hermione received the lemon drop, and happily let it loll on her tongue.

Harry could only smile. He never would have guessed that Hermione would take such a liking to the bittersweet taste of a lemon drop…

But then again, Hermione was full of surprises.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: I tried my best with this chapter, as I always do. In retrospect, I hope that I'll be more satisfied with my work from here on out. Also, let it be noted that I like Dumbledore a lot. I don't like to portray him as a manipulative jerk, so I'll be keeping him in a good light, most likely. 


	7. An Understanding Between Men

**Foreword: **Once again, I'd like to take some time out of this chapter to thank every one of you who reviewed. Also, I'm truly sorry that I didn't update any earlier, as I was a tiny bit occupied… I was out of town and just couldn't find any time to write. Sorry, everyone! I really didn't do it on purpose.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own any of the characters or people involved in this story, nor do I own Hogwarts and anything affiliated with it.

* * *

"Potter! I knew you had sunk low, but the _mudblood_? Heh, I'll bet it wasn't even good… Who would touch that filthy mudblood, anyway?" Draco Malfoy sneered as he spoke to Harry and Hermione, who had just entered the Great Hall, with the rest of the lunch rush. "Figures she'd give it up first chance she got. I'll bet the availability was more enticing than her looks!" The arrogant Slytherin laughed boisterously, aiming insult after vicious insult at Hermione.

Harry glowered and menacingly advanced upon the young man. Harry had an aura about him that gave a tiny glimpse into the pure rage accumulating with each word. His usual slouch reformed into a proud, upright stance, akin to a lion, his sea green eyes flashing with ominous intent.

The platinum blond boy quickly retreated behind Crabbe and Goyle, his two, for lack of a better term, meat shields. "What are you going to do, Scarhead? Cry about it to mummy and daddy?" The young man smirked and spoke as though he had forgotten, "Oh! That's _right! _You _can't_… You don't _have _any parents, _do _you?"

Hermione rushed to Harry's side, in an attempt to calm him. As soon as she saw her friend reaching for his want, the girl instantly wrapped a hand around Harry's wrist, in an effort to keep him from drawing it.

But, she was quite too late. Her hand was firmly around Harry's outstretched wrist. Overwhelming madness blazed within Harry as he lashed out with his wand, sending a gigantic blast of concussive air towards the three Slytherins, sending the trio ricocheting off of the cobblestone floor of the Great Hall. Harry snarled as he let his hand drop to his side, and pocketed his wand, casting a glare in their direction.

As Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle got to their feet, and each drew their wands, Professor Snape, known to favor Slytherin blatantly, stormed into the Hall. "_What_ may I ask is going on in here, _Potter_?" he said coldly, venomous barbs clearly inserted into the inquiry.

"Professor, Potter and that mud- er… Granger attacked us! We were completely surprised!" If there was one thing Malfoy was skilled at, it was lying. Putting on his most convincing act, he implored the teacher, "He should be _expelled! _Those two attacked me without any reason!"

Doom reared its ugly head as Professor Snape's countenance twisted into a sadistic smirk. "Well, _Potter_… Seeing as how you've attacked another student, I only see it fitting to recommend your expulsion from Hogwarts." He gleefully chuckled as he muttered, "I've been waiting for this day, Potter… Do you see your son? Do you see how _like _you he is? Does it make you proud?!"

Thoroughly outraged at Snape's actions, Harry threw his arms up into the air and began to shout, "But I didn't d-"

"Er, Professor Snape?"

"What is it, Diggory?" Snape snapped, voice saturated with displeasure, as he glared across the Great Hall at Cedric Diggory, who had stood up from his seat at the Hufflepuff table.

"Malfoy's lying. I saw the whole thing happen, Professor. Harry, as you can see, doesn't even have his wand drawn. Malfoy was running his mouth, calling the both of them all kinds of awful things. Things a _real _man would be ashamed to say." Cedric folded his arms across his chest, and gestured to Harry with his head, "Harry hasn't done anything… I'm sure there are more than enough witnesses around here that'll agree with what I've said." Cedric glanced around dangerously at the people in the room, and said, "_Right_?"

The entire Great Hall returned to their meals, trying their hardest to avoid the situation completely. They weren't going to be dragged into such a sticky predicament, especially after waking up with pounding headaches, just as Fred and George Weasly had planned.

Snape was greeted by a wall of silence, as he searched for the truth. Had Harry been making eye contact, the situation would've been easily resolved, though his eyes remained on his feet. Severus Snape would not risk attempting to pierce Cedric's mind, as the Hufflepuff prefect would most likely notice what was transpiring as soon as he began to probe. Utterly enraged with the course of the day, Snape once again stalked out of the room, unable to handle losing to Harry twice in one day. 'This is getting ridiculous…'

Malfoy snarled, as he made his own escape from the Great Hall, "My _father _will hear of this." His two flunkies followed on his heels, as they did their best to keep up with the smaller, more nimble boy.

Hermione brusquely shoved Harry, forcefully saying, "You _shouldn't _have done that, Harry! I can't believe you'd let Malfoy almost get you _expelled_!"

"I-I know, Hermione… but… I just couldn't let him get away with that. Picking on me, I can handle, but I'm not going to let him snipe you like that," Harry reasoned, as he avoided Hermione's piercing stare as best as possible.

He was like a puppy. She just couldn't be mad at him for long. The girl smiled and gently patted him on the shoulder, "Just don't do it again, Harry… Try to _think_ before acting so rashly…" Hermione felt the lemon drop in her mouth disappear into nothing, and frowned.

"What's wrong, Hermione?" Harry's inquisitive eyes finally met hers, as he took a tentative glance at her, once he caught the frown from the corner of his eyes.

"Oh, nothing, Harry." The academic girl smiled brightly, and said, "It's nothing important."

"If you say so…" Harry glanced over at Cedric, and nodded towards him with an appreciative look. In the past hour, he had learned more about the Hufflepuff Champion through his actions, than he had known in the past four years.

Shrugging, the sixth year grinned and returned the nod, with a raised hand, as if to say, 'No problem. I've got your back, mate.'

Harry and Hermione found their way to the Gryffindor table, and sat down, once they had located Ron Weasly, who looked to be in quite a sour mood as he glared with distain upon the front page of the Daily Prophet. As the redhead noticed the pair sitting next to him, he jumped, startled that they had come out of nowhere. Apparently he had been zoning out, and the entire fiasco in the center of the Great Hall had escaped his notice. "Bloody hell, don't sneak up on me like that!" he snarled.

"Ron… we really should talk," Harry stated. He knew it would be a sore point for the both of them, but it was one thing that simply _had _to be done.

"I know." That was it. Ron spoke with mixed feelings on the matter, and kept his part to a minimum, unsure of what else he could say.

Motioning towards the Daily Prophet, Harry cautiously said, "You… You know all of that's a lie… right?"

"I don't know _what _to believe at this point, Harry…" Ron turned to the Boy-Who-Lived and cogently said, "Mate, I _saw _you! I _saw _what you were doing! I mean…" Glancing over at Hermione, Ron leaned closer to Harry and said, "I'm glad for you and all, but why can't you trust me?! You never tell me anything, mate… I thought we were supposed to be best friends! We're _really_ going to have to talk, mate… man to man."

"I know, Ron…" Trailing off, Harry stared into his hands for a while, before saying, "I can make time, whenever you're ready." He felt a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder, knowing that Hermione was supporting his actions as well.

"You know I can't think on an empty stomach." Ron's lips curled upwards into a grin, as he ravenously took hold of his fork, and set upon the plate piled full of food in front of him. "We'll sort all this out after lunch."

"Harry," Hermione whispered, getting the boy's attention.

"Yeah?"

"I… I wanted to say that I'm proud of you. You're taking a very adult approach to the situation. You're growing up faster than I'd expected."

Harry smiled and felt warmth rush over him at her compliment. It was good once and a while to receive a genuine accolade, and Harry quite knew this one to be genuine. Hermione wasn't adept in the business of lying. "Thanks, Hermione…"

He beamed for a while, before realizing the subtle insinuation beneath her praise, "H-Hey! Wait, are you saying I'm childish?!"

* * *

**Author's Notes: **Well, that's another one in the bag… albeit a short one. I'm thinking that I'll be writing about the next task soon enough. I know some of you can't wait for Harry and Hermione to hook up. Neither can I, but unfortunately… or perhaps fortunately, I really want to take things slowly. So, you know the inevitable is coming… but it's in the future somewhere. Thanks again for reading! 


	8. Ties That Bind

**Foreword**: I'd like to, once more, take the time to say that I'm glad for anybody who has reviewed my story! I really appreciate it, and I want you to know that it makes a guy feel like he's doing something right for a change. I'm glad that you guys actually get some sort of enjoyment out of this. Also, if my chapters aren't updated as promptly as before, it's because school started getting in the way, unfortunately. I'll still try my best to get these chapters to you in a timely fashion though!

**Disclaimer**: Nope… I don't own Harry Potter or anything affiliated with it, the only exception being this story, which I technically don't really own… It's subject to the whim of J.K. Rowling. If she wants it gone, well… she's the boss, though her decisions for the way the books ended were much to my chagrin.

* * *

"Mate, I can't believe what happened… You didn't even show up to the Yule Ball!" Ron shook his head and folded his arms. "I was counting on you, mate. I was counting on you to be there! You know, just us guys!"

"Did you at least have fun?" Harry asked meekly, as he rested up against his headboard, keeping a watchful eye on his fuming friend.

"Er… well yeah… Yeah, I did. I actually danced with quite a few girls…" Ron's eyes went starry as he dreamily said, "Girls like _Fleur_…" The Weasly boy punched his bed and stared at Harry, "But that's not the point! You could've at least told me you were going to stay in the Common Room with… with _her_."

"Ron, I _did _tell you I wasn't going… You just didn't want to believe me, mate." Harry reached into his trunk, and pulled out the golden egg, the one clue he had to his next task. "And what do you mean _her_? I… Hermione was just keeping me company. I didn't really want to be alone, and… well, I didn't want to go to the Ball either, so… Well, we just sort of stayed in."

"It just wasn't the same without you, mate… I mean, we've been doing everything together since first year… But now, it seems like… like we're not best mates any more." Ron revealed the truth behind his problems, and also leaned back against his headboard. "I know this year's been full of surprises and all, and I know we haven't been takin' things like we should but… Mate, I can't help but feel like you're leaving me out! And… and with this _thing _between you and Hermione…" Ron trailed off and once again shook his head, angrily striking his bed.

"What _thing_, Ron?! Hermione and I are just friends… Nothing has changed between her and I. What you saw… It was awkward, yes, but you have to understand, Ron… This whole," Harry waved his arms about to add emphasis, "_tournament _fiasco is… it's really taking a toll on me, mate. I was just tired. Hermione was just… you know, there… She sorta could tell what I was going through and… well, you know what happened." Harry let out a massive sigh and said, "I don't want us to grow apart. You're my best mate, and I want things to stay that way. It's just… with Hermione I can just relax… You know what I'm saying?"

"So you and Hermione… aren't…?" Ron left his question open ended, as it hit him. Ron flung his legs over the side of his bed, and stared at Harry, "You fancy her, don't you!" A mixture of emotions flooded through Ron. On one hand, he felt as though Harry finally had a chance to be happy, but on the other hand, he felt like he had lost a bit of two friendships… but why was there a trickle of jealousy running through him?

Harry simply laughed, "I wouldn't bank on it, Ron. Hermione and I are just friends." After an uncertain silence, Harry gently added, so that nobody could hear him, "… I think." His face flushed completely red, as he thought about Hermione's beaming countenance.

"If you say so, mate." Ron extended his hand towards his friend, and they powerfully and meaningfully clasped hands for a moment. That handshake reaffirmed the pair's friendship. "I still think you should've let me know you weren't going to the Ball," Ron grumbled, with a smirk on his face.

"Oh, come off it, Ron. It's not _my _fault you were too thick to listen to what I was saying." The pair burst into laughter, and Harry momentarily forgot about the pressure and stress of day to day life. After the bout had subsided, Harry glanced over at Ron and asked, "Ron… What makes you think that… you know, Hermione and I…?" His questioning tone, and inability with words combined to form a question that went unfinished, though its intent was clearly portrayed.

"I dunno, mate. Just sorta… Eh, what's it matter? You said there's nothing going on…" Grinning like the Cheshire cat, Ron said, "Unless I was right! There _is _something!"

"No, no, no… It's nothing like that, Ron. I just want to know _why _everyone thinks there's something between Hermione and I… you know, other than friendship." Harry struggled with his words, as he wasn't quite used speaking about such awkward topics.

Unable to answer, due to Ron's quite obvious lack of skill when it came to women, he simply shrugged and said, "Ask Hermione… She can probably explain it a lot better than I can. Or ask Ginny… She's got a knack for stuff like this."

Ron and Harry simultaneously shrugged, and both headed down towards the Common Room. "Up for some Wizard's Chess, mate?"

Harry nodded and groaned, "I'm certainly up to losing."

---------------

The pair ended up sitting near to the fire, with the chess board between them. In the first few minutes, Harry had somehow managed to completely back himself into a corner, and Ron was grinning madly as his knight wreaked havoc upon Harry's disgruntled soldiers.

"What are you doing?!" The tiny voice of his king squeaked. "You're getting us massacred!"

"I-I'm sorry!" Harry stammered, trying to think up a strategy to defeat Ron, and save his pieces from the humiliation of yet another defeat. "Uh… kn-knight to A6?"

Begrudgingly, the mounted soldier sallied his way towards the square he was designated, but not before shaking a fist at Harry, "I'm a _knight! _Not a bloody target!"

Ron's rook shot across the board and shattered the knight, effectively removing him from combat. It was a risky move, but Ron was positive that Harry would _never _be able to understand the high risk, high reward maneuver that he had employed.

"Queen to F8." Hermione's vivid tone rang out through the Common Room, though she barely spoke above a whisper.

"Finally! We actually have a _competent _commander for a change!" The King roared, as he watched as his Queen sailed across the board, effectively tying the final knot into the trap that Ron had set for himself.

Harry and Ron both sat with mouths agape. "Ch…Checkmate?" Harry tentatively said, as he realized that Ron's King was in imminent peril. "I… I won? Er… well… I guess _Hermione _won!"

Ron glared at the girl and folded his arms, "I would've had him if _you _hadn't butted in, Hermione!"

The girl shrugged and said, "Perhaps it was time you met your match at this… _barbaric_ game, you seem so fascinated with."

Jumping out of his seat, Harry quickly hugged Hermione and danced around the chess board. "I-I won! I actually won! Ron the Undefeated has finally been beaten!"

"Way to rub it in, mate," Ron said sorely, as he plucked a chocolate frog from the corner of the table and violently ripped its head off, before stuffing it down his throat. "Bloody game…"

Shaking the blush that had formed from Harry's hug away, the girl plucked a book from a nearby coffee table, and said, "Oh, relax, Ronald. It's just a game…" Hermione sat down on the arm rest of Harry's chair, crossing one leg over the other, as she folded her hands in her lap.

After a flash of red, two bodies dashed past her, and headed towards the Girls' Dormitory. Ever so calm and collected, the studious young witch withdrew her wand and lazily flicked it in the direction of Fred and George, who were obviously up to no good.

Instantly, their shoe laces enlarged and wrapped around their ankles, acting as a trip-wire, sending the dynamic duo sprawling to the carpeted floor of the Common Room with a nasty case of rug burn. "That's the wrong room, boys," Hermione said wryly, as she placed her wand back in her pocket. She fidgeted with her curly locks as she glanced at the book she had opened.

The twins looked back and forth from the other, and Hermione, and their dumbfounded expressions slowly thawed into astounded smiles. In chorus, the pair said, "That was _wicked!_"

"You, Hermione, are-"

"Going to have to teach us-"

"That _nifty _little trick of yours."

"You two are lucky I'm not a prefect, or else I'd have reported you faster than you could complete one another's sentences," Hermione retorted, obviously annoyed at their mad dash towards the Girls' Dormitory. "Invading a girl's privacy is _not _something to do at a whim." Muttering, she said, "Honestly! Boys these days… absolutely none of them know how to be a gentleman… They're positively brutish."

"But… What about me?" Harry whispered into her ear, with a smirk and a genuine look of curiosity on his face. During her distractions, he had crept close to her, his head adjacent to hers.

Hermione rolled her eyes and gently back-handed him on the chest. "If you _must _know, I can't quite consider you a boy any more. At least _you _know how to treat somebody correctly."

"H-Hey! That was uncalled for, Hermione… You didn't have to go and make fun of me like that…" Harry frowned a bit, and said, "I was being serious!"

Hermione bit her lower lip and smiled at his innocent reaction. She tucked a few errant curls behind her ear and gently whispered back to him. "So was I, Harry."

Unnoticed by the pair was the third set of eyes watching with jealousy. Ron's eyes focused intently upon them, and he glowered silently.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Ah! I'm sorry that this was a shorter chapter… My ballpark aim is about two thousand words per chapter, and I fell a little short. I'll make it up though! I promise I will! Hm, not sure where to go from here… I'd assume that I'll get the ball rolling, and actually progress with the year, and the tournament. Before I forget, I enabled anonymous reviews. I didn't know that they were disabled, so I'm quite sorry for any anonymous reviewers that were shunned from reviewing. Please leave some feedback! I'd appreciate that very much! 


	9. Grim Realizations

**Foreword**: Please don't be mad… I cursed myself just as much as I'm sure many of you did, haha. My internet decided to off itself just as I was about to upload the chapter, and I was forced to just go to bed. Now that the internet decided to resuscitate itself, I can upload this for your reading pleasure. Again, I just want to say Thanks! Everybody who reviewed, I'm glad that you did. I appreciate it every time I hear from one of you. Your suggestions really tend to help out. Again, I'm trying to actually seem human, so I _do _try to respond to your reviews, even if it's just to say thanks. It'd be awfully rude to not do it. Also, this is just an alert. Quite some time has passed between this chapter and the last one.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to Harry Potter in any way, shape or form. You'd know if I did, haha.

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Harry and Hermione sat a secluded corner of the library. Harry looked quite displeased, as his arms were folded over his chest tightly, and his brow furrowed deeply. "This isn't good, Hermione… I-I don't know what's going to happen."

The girl rolled her eyes and said, "Worrying about it isn't going to help any at all. All it will do is stress you out, and make you less prepared for the task." Hermione placed her hand on his shoulder and squeezed, "I know it's uncomfortable, but you have t- Harry, _listen_ to me! You have to try your best to figure out what to do. You _did _remember to write down what the egg said, when you heard it sing, last Thursday, didn't you?"

Harry sighed, and placed a piece of parchment in front of the girl. It was hastily scribbled, and almost illegible, so Hermione, after deciphering the scrawl, reproduced the words neatly onto a fresh piece of paper. She surreptitiously sucked on a lemon drop as she nibbled on the end of her quill, lost deep in thought.

Harry found himself staring at his friend. 'She's… sort of cute when she's thinking so hard." Shaking his head, Harry pushed the thought to the back of his head, 'That's ridiculous… She's _Hermione_… We're supposed to be friends.'

'But… But what's wrong with her looking nice?' Harry's more timid subconscious said. 'There's nothing wrong with thinking that. I… I think she looks nice... quite… often.'

Harry blinked and silenced his inner voices. "Er, Hermione…?" he said slowly, almost scared to disrupt her trance-like state of pure concentration.

"What is it, Harry?" She glanced over, with concern, as she noted the poignant look painted across his face. "Is something… something wrong?"

"Um, no…" After seeing the skeptical look on his friend's face, he smiled forlornly and said, "Well, yeah… This… this task doesn't sit well with me. Compared to the last one, this seems… it seems much more dangerous. From what I could gather, I'm not fighting to survive… I'm fighting to let somebody _else_ survive!"

Hermione scooted her chair closer to him, and wrapped an arm around him. She gently leaned her own head against Harry's, comfortingly whispering to him, "Shhh… Harry… Don't-"

"Something could really happen, Hermione! Someone could _die!_ It's different when it's just me out there… I don't think I can handle this." He buried his face in his hands, and his whole body tensed in anxiety. "What if I slip up? I'd have to live with that on my conscious every day for the rest of my life!" Harry shouted, "I _can't take_ that!"

"If you keep complaining about it, and doing nothing to _deal _with it, you _will _get somebody killed, _including _yourself!" Hermione retorted, shaking him roughly. "Listen to me, Har-" She shook him once more and forced him to look directly at her, "_Listen _to me, Harry…" Voice softening once more, the girl said, "Look… I know this is hard on you, but you're not the only one. I-er… Ron and I… are afraid every time you end up in a dangerous situation, Harry… This is no different. I _know _that you're freaking out with all the stress. Harry, this is… it's just a test. It's nothing more. In fact, _don't _think of it as anything more." She motioned towards the various tomes littering their table and continued, "Think of this as studying, Harry. You'll do fine, I'm sure of it."

He dejectedly looked at the books and grimaced. "Yeah… fine," he echoed, the worry still on his mind. Harry glanced sideways at Hermione, who glared at him furiously, indicating that he either start to reform his attitude, or she'd do it for him. He immediately wiped the frown from his face, and allowed a neutral expression to take over. "I-I can do this," he said as positively as he could, "I just need to prepare for it… It's nothing but a practical exam."

"There you go, Harry," Hermione said, with an upbeat tone in her voice. "Now… I need to focus on this clue." Again, she was lost in her thoughts, reflexively sucking on the lemon drop tucked in her cheek. She twirled one of her curly locks of hair around her finger, and nibbled the end of her quill, attention absorbed by the parchment in front of her.

Harry took one final look at her, savoring the moment, as though he was taking a complete photograph of the memory, burning every detail vividly into his mind. As the moment ended, he turned back to his own, quite sloppily written clue, turning it over in his brain. But again and again, he felt his eyes gravitating towards Hermione. Of course, his mind tried its best to logically explain the situation, saying, 'This is a moment that I'll be able to look back on… well, if I _survive_, I'll be able to look back on and say, "That's what a true friend is like"… There's nothing going on between us.' "Um… Hermione…?"

"What is it _now_, Harry?!" she demanded, snapping out of her trance-like state. However, when she glanced at him, she was pleasantly surprised to see that he wasn't frowning. Instead, he was blushing, and had a bashful look on his face. "Er… sorry. What is it, Harry?"

"Thanks… I really don't know what I'd do without you." He smiled and reached over to squeeze her hand. "You really are a true friend, Hermione." His hand hesitated, though he did pull it back after a moment. "I don't think I say it often enough… Sorry about that."

"I know it's one of those implied things, but… It really feels quite pleasant to be told, every now and again, however." She genuinely smiled at Harry, and patted him on the shoulder. She seemed as though she was fighting back tears of happiness as she returned to her piece of parchment. 'Harry's such a nice boy… It's not just that scar that makes him special.'

There are certain situations in life when a person comes to a realization. This was indefinitely one of them.

'Why… Why are we so close?' thought Hermione, as she realized her face had somehow migrated towards Harry's as through some form of magnetism.

And it was getting closer.

She could feel Harry's breath gently streaming past her, as they both dipped closer and closer. Involuntarily, Hermione's eyes closed. 'What am I doing? Shouldn't I be a tiny bit more focused on the clue? Harry's survival is more important than doing what_ever _it is my body's busy doing.'

Of course, Harry, however, had a _much_ firmer grasp on what he was doing. Instead of coherent thought, all he could manage to think was a spastic jumble of random letters and emotions. In short, he was even more far gone than Hermione was, as his face closed in on Hermione's.

Neither was sure why the moment came. Neither was sure _how _the moment came. In fact, neither could be sure they weren't dreaming. The only thing they could be sure of was that it _was _happening. The consciousness of both Harry and Hermione seemed to be floating besides their bodies.

"Am I interrupting something, you two?!" Ron's voice rang out harshly in the otherwise silent library. He was staring daggers, no… No, Ron was angrier than daggers. He was staring spears straight through both of their heads, as he saw how dangerously close the pair's lips had gotten.

Hermione instantly snapped out of her trance-like state and, without moving a muscle or flinching, said, "No, Ronald. Everything's just normal." She reached up, and pretended to pluck something off of Harry's face. "Harry just had something on his face… I just told him to sit still for a moment." The girl smirked inwardly. 'Oh… that was quite sly, Hermione Granger… but… but why were Harry and I…? Never mind… I'll deal with that later.'

"Yeah, sure…" Ron gruffly folded his arms and said, "Hey mate, you want to get out and do a little bit of flying?" Who could blame Ron for wanting to spend a bit of time with a friend? Though he had come at an inopportune moment, Ron still planned to hang out with his best mate. He was determined to not let this… _incident_ ruin the friendship that had finally begun to recover.

"I'm sorry, Ron… Hermione and I are trying to figure out that clue I showed you last Thursday." Harry shook his head, noting the progress that they hadn't made, and said, "You're more than welcome to join us though… We need all the help we can get." Harry closed his eyes and ran his fingers through his messy, black hair as he let out an exasperated sigh. "As you can see, it's stumping the both of us."

"I wouldn't know. I didn't see either of you actually trying to figure it _out_," Ron said grumpily, as he sat down.

"Ron… We've been at this for hours…" Harry was being cautious. He wasn't about to ruin what had recently been fixed. When dealing with Ron, Harry had found that he needed to word things as delicately as possible to avoid conflict. "Come on, you know how it is. This is… important, mate."

Clenching a fist under the table, Ron snapped, "If it's so important, then why were you practically sucking Hermione's face off?!"

"We weren't doing anything like that, Ron!" Harry stood up and said, "Look, I don't know what happened when you came in here. I honestly don't. Hermione and I just sort of spaced out for a moment. It's no big deal, mate."

Ron dismissively said, "Yeah, whatever… Apparently, you're too busy to hang out with me, so I'll let you get back to pretending to care." His acerbic words bit viciously into Harry. He was already confused enough as it is, without Ron added into the mix.

"Ron! The next task is coming up… I can't… I _can't_. I flat out _refuse _to let this thing beat me! I don't want to die in this stupid tournament, and I don't want anybody _else _to die in it either!" Harry's eyes blazed with passion as he found the words to rebut Ron's accusations.

During the course of the fight, Hermione felt as though she was nothing more than a tiny spec of dust, caught in the midst of two colliding hurricanes. To be quite honest, she felt disturbed at Ron's reaction. She was also troubled by Harry's and her actions. There was so much to digest in such a short time.

"Yeah, well why don't you just go ahead and kiss Hermione?! Huh? You can go ahead and kiss her until your next task… And after that, you can kiss her right into your _bloody _grave, for all I care!" Ron shouted, as he angrily slammed a fist on the table and stalked away.

Harry's sea-green eyes flashed dangerously, as he watched the retreating figure of Ron. He was much too angry for words, more or less coherent thought. He could feel nothing but pure rage at the thought of losing his friends, and being able to do nothing about it, just as he had lost his parents. The icy blade of grief bit into his gut, and was savagely twisted as he realized. 'I'm going to die.'

'I don't want to die…_ I don't want to die!_' He felt himself boil over, and the instantly gratifying release of magic washed over him, as countless shelves of books instantly ejected the volumes of information violently to the floor of the library, indefinitely interrupting the silence. Harry was unaware of everything that was happening. There was a buzzing in his ears as he thought of his own demise, and the demise of his friends. The very prospect frightened him down to the very soul.

Hermione gently hugged Harry, her face pressed in the crook of his neck, as his body trembled in anger. Feeling his body tense up with rage, Hermione hugged him a little tighter, so as to alert him to her presence… The intelligent girl wanted to make _sure_ that he _knew _that she was there for him. Ron had managed to give voice to the fears skulking in the back of Harry's head, threatening to show themselves at the first sign of weakness. He had been keeping them at bay for the longest time, but the dam had finally broken, and they were realized.

And standing there, embracing her friend, Hermione was humbled and made small by Harry's fury.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: So close… They were very close. Of course, as usual, Ron ruined it. Hahah, sorry guys, but it's still too early in the story for something like that! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know that Harry may seem like a wimp at some times, but when he's alone, he can actually let his guard down, and quit pretending to be so strong. He is just a boy after all. Drop me a review, if you have time! 


	10. A Modest Distraction

**Foreword**: Thanks for reviewing, everybody. I really appreciate that. I'm glad that you guys find my writing above average, and original even. It's one of the best things I could hope for, and it makes me proud to have you all reviewing my modest story. Again, I'd like to note that quite some time has passed since the last update. There was not much to tell in that period.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything except for about half of the events occurring. Everything else is all JK Rowling's… And she's made a killing off of them. It would be nice if _I _could do something like that, hahah. Anyway… I'd be more than willing to comply with taking the story down if I was contacted by a bunch of JK Rowling's lawyers and all that craziness… Though I don't know what threat my story poses.

* * *

Harry had been here all day. He sad silently, perched on the windowsill, with his head leaning on the window, as he stared through the paned glass. The four champions had been sequestered for an entire day, and weren't allowed to have any human contact, other then amongst themselves. Everyone was on edge, with no exceptions. The room was plain, though it had a few massive windows facing away from the Black Lake. Inside, it was sparsely furnished, with only a few chairs, a couch, and a four poster bed for each of the Champions.

Fleur had taken to napping, while Krum carefully polished and groomed his broom. Cedric, ever the vigilant student, carefully practiced spells in the corner of the room. Harry, however, had simply taken to spacing out, as his emerald green eyes, unfocused, blankly stared out at the blurred landscape outside Hogwarts Castle.

It was hard to deal with Ron absolutely refusing to speak with him once more. And what was worse is that the problems between the two were greatly written about, much to the chagrin and mystification of all parties involved. Rita Skeeter was somehow gathering information without physically being present, and that disturbed him. Harry could keep nothing secret from the woman, unless he cloistered himself all alone. But Harry could not do that… he needed the support of his friends too much.

It had taken a while to figure it out, but Harry and Hermione managed to decode the cryptic clue. Something very important to Harry would be taken into the Black Lake, and guarded by the Merfolk.

He faintly smiled as he remembered when Hermione had figured it out. It had already been a late night, since the both of them had detention in the Library every night for an entire month, after Harry's spasm of accidental magic. They were forced to manually re-shelve each book perfectly, which was, the least to say, quite tedious work, and clean the library, again, manually. It had become habitual for the two to finish detention, and then return to the Common Room, where they'd work on decrypting the clue for the second task until exhaustion forced them to sleep.

On one of those long nights, Harry had turned in before Hermione, only to be woken up about an hour later, her excited face shaking him awake, frantically whispering his name. She had figured out what the clue had meant. It was then that he hopped out of bed and tightly embraced her, to thank her for the help, despite his mainly undressed state.

'How… awkward…' Harry thought with a bashful look on his face. 'I-I can't believe I did something like that… I mean, I was _hardly _in any state for her to see me.' He frowned though, remembering that the task was to start tomorrow morning. 'Something important is going to be taken? Nothing could be more important than my friends.' Harry clenched his fist and his eyes focused, as he thought of Hermione smiling brightly. 'I _won't _let this tournament claim my friends.' Harry thought of the gillyweed that was stashed away in a jar, silently thanking Dobby, the ever-faithful house elf.

Harry leaned his head back and allowed it to rest against the windowsill, and he closed his eyes momentarily. 'I've gotta be strong. I can't break down. Hermione… _All _my friends are counting on me.'

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and heard Cedric's voice. "Hey, Harry… since we're all cooped up in this room, can we talk? You know… privately?" Cedric was calm, and collected, as he usually was. He coolly walked towards the corner he had been practicing magic in and sat down on the floor, with his back in the crook of the room.

Harry joined him, slumping down to the floor, resting his own back against the wall.

"You nervous?"

"Yeah…"

"Me too." Cedric nodded sadly, and rested his arm across his raised knee. "So how about we just forget this tournament for a while? We never did talk about what really happened at the Yule Ball, did we?"

"I guess not." Harry smiled, remembering the night he had spent, far away from the prying eyes of the rest of the inhabitants of Hogwarts. "I was… you know, nervous. I didn't want to go to the Yule Ball. There were so many people who wanted my attention. So many people I barely knew, and who barely knew me. I mean, I thought very seriously about asking Hermione to the Yule Ball, but I just knew… I knew it was something I didn't want to attend." Harry chuckled a bit, knowing how ridiculous he sounded.

"Don't laugh, mate. That's perfectly reasonable… You shouldn't have to live up to anybody else's expectations." Cedric looked at Harry with honesty glinting in his eyes, and gave an imperceptible nod.

Harry appreciatively grinned, and continued, "Well, after dodging quite a few girls, I slipped out of the Great Hall during dinner, and made it to the Common Room. Turns out, Hermione was there too, and… well, we just got to talking… a-and the Yule Ball came up. She didn't want to go, I didn't want to go, so I just asked if I could stay with her instead. The rest is history."

"But not Rita Skeeter's version," Cedric stated, rather than asked. He knew that Rita Skeeter would twist the facts however she could to get a story, and he simply didn't think that Harry and Hermione would do something _that _racy.

The sun cast long shadows across both of their faces, as Harry shook his head. "No… I… I fell asleep, and Hermione just… she sat with me."

Cedric's jaw dropped as he gaped at Harry. "I knew Rita Skeeter wrote a bunch of lies, but I didn't know she could twist something like _that _into what she did! How did she get the whole part about your… you know?"

Harry managed to awkwardly say, through a blush, "Well… she and I were a tad close… My head was kind of… resting on her leg."

"Oh… That's it?" Cedric couldn't contain the incredulity in his voice. He simply couldn't wrap his head around the fact that somebody would twist such a monotonous event into something as vulgar and disgusting as Rita Skeeter had.

"That's the entire story."

A few moments of silence passed between the two. It was a comfortable silence, not like the silences he had been subjected to at the Dursley's house.

"So… what do you think of her?"

"Who? Hermione?" Harry glanced sidelong at the Hufflepuff seeker, and raised an eyebrow. "Uh… w-why?"

"Curiosity, I guess." He shrugged, and shifted against the wall, for a better view of Harry, so he could read the younger boy's facial expressions better. "I want your take on the situation."

"She and I are friends." Harry nodded, doing his best to beat that notion into his own head without a doubt. "There's nothing more between us," he finished with absolute finality. Yet, the shadow of doubt once again crept into his mind. Voice wavering, he, very quietly, amended his statement, "I… I think."

Though it was a question, Cedric somehow made it seem more like a statement. "Having doubts?"

"I don't know… Maybe," Harry said uncertainly. He wasn't sure exactly _what _was going through him at the moment. He simply wrote it up to stress, and shrugged. "I just can't figure it out… Unfortunately, Ron thinks there's something we haven't been telling him."

"Fred and George's little brother? He's a bit of a hothead." Cedric put a hand to his chin and thought for a moment, then slowly said, "Ever think that _he_ might have something for Hermione?"

"Ron? I don't think so… He's… not quite nice to Hermione that often. In fact, he's flat out mean to her at times." Sadly, the Boy-Who-Lived shook his head. "He's even gone so far as to call her unattractive, and bossy." Harry's voice seemed to linger on the unattractive part, and only tack on the end of the sentence as an after thought, as though he was hung up on the former part.

"What about you? What do _you _think of her?"

"I… don't know for sure," Harry confessed, as he ran a hand through his dark hair, in a pitiful attempt to smooth it down. "She's always there for me, I know that at least. Hermione's just able to tell, you know? She can just tell when something's on my mind, and somehow manages to pry it out of my thick skull, even when I don't want to talk about it. I… I can come to her with anything, and not worry."

Cedric placed a hand on Harry's shoulder and stood up. "Sounds like you have yourself a real friend there, Harry… You're lucky. Not everybody can say that. I think… you should just listen to yourself, Harry. You say you're not sure about your feelings, but I think you'll sort them out one day." He waved goodbye to Harry, and slipped into one of the four-poster beds in the cloistered room with the Champions in it.

Harry glanced over to Krum, who hadn't noticed anything, as he had been fervently caring for his Quidditch equipment, and was wholly absorbed by the task. Fleur still remained behind the curtained exterior of one of the four beds in the room.

As the sun rested on the horizon, and continued to gently shuffle away, Harry climbed into the bed assigned to him. "I'll need all the rest I can get, especially with tomorrow coming up."

Harry disrobed, and slipped under the covers, pulling the curtains around his bed, for privacy's sake. The black haired boy turned onto his side, and began to curl up, for comfort and warmth. "Somebody… Mum, Dad… Whoever's watching," he prayed, "Please… Help me."

And as he closed his eyes, Harry swore he could almost feel the familiar presence of Hermione wrapping her arms around him, with her soothing voice cooing gently into his ear, "Shh… You're safe here, Harry… You're safe."

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Just a slowed down pace. The task will come next chapter! Again, I really like Cedric's character. I always felt that Harry and he would've interacted more, since they're both Champions, and how distraught Harry was over his death. I always thought that it was a potential friendship that was never quite explored, unfortunately. But alas, at least I get the chance to do it! Cedric seems like the type of person to help talk somebody through their troubles, and that's what Harry needs. Kind of like a surrogate big brother. Please leave me a review, if you have the time! I know I really skipped around with the last two chapters, and I'm sorry. I just don't think I could handle multiple chapters for every single day! 


	11. Chaos in the Black Lake

**Foreword**: I just wanted to thank all of you. I really didn't think that this story would or could garner much attention, and to my surprise, a delightful one mind you, it has! I'm extremely happy that you readers enjoy reading this story. If it wasn't for the encouragement I've received, this story may have only ended up being two or three chapters long. Now, thanks to all of you, it has actually gained a considerable amount of length to it. For that, I thank you. Ah yes, the story… The second task is about to begin! Also, whatever you may be thinking, or think you know about it, come to this chapter with a clear head. You may just be surprised, ha ha.

**Disclaimer**: No… Not this again. I hate saying how little I own in real life. I don't own J.K. Rowling's fantastic story, or her characters. But, I'm _very _thankful I don't own the decisions she made for the story… Darn you, Deathly Hallows!

* * *

Harry was quickly ushered towards a wooden platform a little ways into Black Lake, with the other Champions following suit. However, Harry had to practically be dragged by a team of Ministry body guards, as he was absolutely terrified of the task. He breathed deeply and whispered, "Courage, Harry. Courage." Shakily, he released himself from the grasps of the rough guards, and took a few uneven steps forward, before regaining his composure.

Harry meant business, and he was prepared to do whatever it took to complete the task. Glancing around, into the crowd, Harry felt a pang of worry pierce him. "Where is she?" he said, quietly, craning his neck in an attempt to find Hermione Granger.

Hearing what Harry had muttered, Cedric sped up to catch up with him, and walked beside the younger boy, eyes resolutely staring at the ledge of the raised platform they were on. "Harry… The clue… I think that they might have taken Herm-"

"Harry! Harry!"

He felt a small hand grip him about the wrist. Harry quickly turned, and gently shoved one of the body guards out of the way, where he was greeted by the beaming face of Hermione Granger. A wave of relief poured over him, as he quickly pulled Hermione towards himself and hugged her fiercely, "I'm so glad you're safe!"

"It's alright, Harry." She held onto him as well, absorbing his body heat in the brisk, morning air, "Are… you okay, Harry?"

After a moment of silence, he nodded his head, and let go, "Yeah… I can do this, Hermione." He felt himself being dragged by the bodyguards once again, and motioned with his head for Hermione to walk with him.

"Just remember, Harry… Stay calm, don't waste time. You only have an hour." She leaned closer to Harry and whispered to him, "Merfolk build their homes in the deepest part they can manage, so I would head straight for the very bottom of the lake." Hermione glanced around and placed something into his hand, with a blush on her face. "Um… This helps me relax, when I'm stressed…"

Harry smiled as he saw the familiar, yellow coat of a lemon drop. "Thank you, Hermione… I don't know what I'd do without you." He popped the lemon drop into his mouth and grinned.

"You _did _remember your gillyweed, right?" Hermione stared at him pointedly, knowing he would be in a horrible predicament if he had not remembered it. When he nodded, the girl let out a sigh of relief, and hugged him once more, gently kissing him on the cheek with a massive blush on her face. "Er… that was… um, for good luck."

"I'll need it." Harry's face was set with stony determination, finding no time to blush or even think about Hermione's actions, as he confidently and quickly strode towards the edge of the wooden platform, where Dumbledore, and the Minister of Magic were standing.

As the two began to give their explanation of the task, Harry listened only vaguely. He already knew what the task was, as he was sure all of the other champions did. Instead, to calm the anxiety quickly surfacing, Harry glanced into the crowds, in an attempt to find people that he knew. He smiled and nodded his head towards Hermione, who had managed to fight her way up to the very front of the crowds, and glanced around, looking for others. Fred and George were perched on top of a massive rock, with Lee Jordan, their partner in crime, so they could get a better view.

Ginny Weasly, was worriedly looking around, and turned to her older brothers. 'Strange… What's she worked up about?' Harry looked to the left, and saw that Seamus Finnigan was also looking around, as though he was also trying to find somebody. Then, above the din, he heard, of all people, Neville Longbottom's usually timid voice. "Where's Ron? You'd think he'd at _least _show up to support Harry, you know?"

And it sunk in.

Ron was at the bottom of the lake. Memories raced through his head. Good memories between the two best friends. Their first Christmas. His first time meeting the Weasly Family. The flying car and the Whomping Willow. The Basilisk. Peter Pettigrew. At that point, Harry's mind blanked, and his only thought screamed at him. 'Ron is my best friend. He was my first friend. We may not be speaking, but I don't want him dead!' Again, more familiar memories raced. Times when Harry and Ron fought, but always made up in the end. Ron always came around. And this time, Ron _couldn't _come around if Harry didn't save him. If Harry didn't save him, Ron's death would hang over him like a plague, ripping away at him until there was nothing left.

As soon as Dumbledore and Cornelius Fudge stepped to the side, Harry, wand in hand, tentatively pointed towards the lake, and muttered, "Accio Ron."

Cedric raised an eyebrow as he glanced over at the younger Hogwarts student, and chuckled a bit.

"Well… It was worth a shot at least…" Harry mumbled, as he felt the slimy gillyweed slosh in his pocket. Reaching into his pocket, he cupped it in his palm, apprehensive to swallow the foul-looking plant.

He heard a loud crack, as though a gun had been shot, to indicate the start of their hour time limit. He also heard three tiny splashes, as he saw the other Champions dive, with perfect form, into the icy waters, leaving him all alone on the wooden platform. Harry quickly glanced around, and shoved the lump of gillyweed down his throat grudgingly. Where everyone else had perfect dives, Harry felt his face smash viciously onto the water, as the rest of his body followed suit, falling like a crash test dummy. As soon as he was in the water, he felt his whole body erupt in fiery pain, despite the chill of the liquid.

After moments of excruciating pain, Harry felt his entire body morph, and he could breathe perfectly. 'Good,' he thought with a nod, 'Now it's time to get down to business.' Immediately, Harry zipped through the water, aided by his webbed hands and feet. 'I have to find Ron… I have to make things… _right_.'

As he headed towards where he assumed was the middle of the lake, Harry quickly passed Fleur, and Krum, who were using the Bubblehead Charm, and a Shark Transfiguration respectively. Tasting the lemon drop still in his mouth, Harry could almost hear Hermione's words. "Stay calm. Don't waste time."

Those words had become a mantra as he continued through the water, and entered a thick forest of seaweed, which blotted out what little light shone from the slowly rising sun, far above the lake.

Harry consciously slowed down, in an attempt to be stealthy… Something about the situation didn't feel right.

He felt like he was being watched.

Every time he thought he saw something from the corner of his eye, it would vanish, leaving him with absolutely no clue what had happened, or if he had imagined it or not. He pulled his wand from its safe, secure place in his waistband, and gripped it tightly, ready to deal with whatever problems he would encounter.

Harry vaguely heard Merfolk singing… Seemingly goading him. He hadn't realized that an entire half-hour had passed as he swam through the weeds. The fact that time was running out was cause enough to make him panic.

'Wh-What if I don't do it? What if I'm not good enough?!' Harry thought, his mind racing with alarm, as dread washed over his body. 'Ron's going to die! There's nothing I can do about it! What use am I? I can't even save my own friends!'

It was subtle, yet strong. The tangy sweetness of the lemon drop Hermione had given him pressed against his tongue. Again, he was reminded of her words. "Stay calm. Don't waste time." He could almost visualize Hermione's shy face, stammering, "Erm… that was… um, for good luck."

Finally calm and collected again, Harry pressed forward, urgency in his actions. He was finally aware of the shadows swimming alongside him. As a fish-like humanoid darted out from the seaweed to mount an assault, Harry quickly barrel rolled, and dipped, flashing his wand out towards the creature.

No magic happened. Harry silently cursed himself, realizing that he couldn't perform the magic he wanted to do without the correct incantations. Since his lungs were filled with water at the moment, he couldn't muster the sonic vibrations needed to voice his thoughts. The black haired boy instantly about-faced, and kicked his feet as violently as possible, to generate speed. If he couldn't blast the Merfolk out of the water, he would try to outrun them, at the very least.

Utilizing the paddle-like features grown via gillyweed, Harry managed to put distance between the Merfolk raiders and himself. A few kicks later, Harry was finally able to see a clearing, with four large rocks, each containing a prisoner. Ron stood out easily, as his red hair marked him like a beacon.

From his peripheral vision, Harry saw a figure pass him, and head towards one of the rocks, where a girl with long, black hair was chained. Harry instantly recognized the pair as Cedric Diggory and Cho Chang. Since Cedric had used the Bubblehead Charm, he could easily cast magic. Through the distortion of the water, Harry could hear the young man cast a spell to break the chains captivating Cho. Within seconds, Cedric was on his way to the surface, Merfolk, with tridents handy, hot in pursuit.

Hoping to divert their attention, Harry swam towards them, and used his body as a battering ram, taking out the leading pursuer. Harry quickly swam back towards the rocks, diverting their attention. 'Hope I helped, Cedric…'

Krum, the half shark, ripped through the water and saved an elderly man with dark hair, tearing the chains up with his razor sharp teeth and strong jaw. Krum was intimidating enough as it was, but when he flashed evil looks towards the Merfolk, as a half-shark hybrid, none dared to follow him.

Closest to Ron's rock was a small girl, with flowing blonde hair. She was almost definitely related to Fleur, perhaps a sister, or cousin. Eying the girl apprehensively, Harry quickly went to Ron's side, leaving the Merfolk to gape at Krum.

A distorted scream was carried through the water, and Harry looked over as Fleur was enveloped in a mesh net, and dragged to the Lake's floor. The only female champion was then sent back to the surface, indefinitely disqualified for having been captured. For the moment, the Merfolk were appeased, and conceded to simply hang back and watch Harry struggle to free his hostage.

The Gryffindor boy yanked and tugged and pulled with all of his might at the chains, but still they did not budge. 'Come on! Come on, come on, come _on!_' Harry wanted to scream, yet he couldn't even make the tiniest of whispers. Frustrated, panicked and overwhelmed by the fear of losing his friend, Harry slammed his wand against the chains, severing them in a dazzling display of magical sparks in the dimly lit lake.

Harry gave Ron a shove towards the surface, and darted over to Fleur's captive, just before being intercepted by Merfolk guards. They screeched at him and brandished their spears and tridents, looking as menacing as they could. 'There's no way I'm going to let somebody die when I can save them!' He knocked aside the guards, and slashed his wand across the chains, his desperation once again enabling his magical powers.

Harry grabbed the girl around the waist, and furiously kicked towards the surface. On his way past, he grabbed Ron as well, and though his progress was hard, he did it nonetheless, because a flock of angry Merfolk was right behind him, tridents, spears and other weapons waving at him.

'The gillyweed?! Oh no…' Harry felt his body contorting once more, restoring his typical human features, and removing the flipper-esque appendages, and gills from his body. Lungs filled with water, burdened by two hostages, with an angry mob behind him, Harry somehow found the strength to push his body to the limits, and pierce the surface.

Ron and the girl were quickly pulled from the water, and Harry was dragged towards a short wooden ladder, leading to a lower tier of the same platform they had jumped from. Bobbing in the water, Harry turned his head and quickly purged himself of the water inside of him by vomiting violently. Thankfully, he had neglected to grab breakfast for himself, or else the situation would have been much more disgusting.

He vaguely heard the cheering of the stands, as he feebly attempted to climb the ladder and pull himself upon the platform. Just as before, Harry felt small hands grip him around the wrists firmly. Hermione struggled to help pull Harry to safety, with a look of pure concern written all over her face.

They weren't fast enough.

Scaly hands gripped Harry's ankles and legs, and he felt the harsh bite of metal piercing into his body. Everything went black as he was yanked back under the water, pulling a screaming Hermione with him.

The crowd stopped cheering.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Uh oh… I'm terribly sorry, but I must cut it short right there! Please don't hang me before I can actually get the next chapter up, ha ha. So, honestly… how many of you thought Hermione would be Harry's prisoner? If you did, that means I did a good job leading you on. Sorry, but I had to. It was too predictable to have Hermione as his prisoner… We all know how much I like predictability. Thanks a lot for reading, and feel free to drop me a review, if you have time. I'm braced for the verbal beating I'll take for making Ron the prisoner, ha ha.

**Post-Script**: I had this chapter DONE! It was all finished, and then the site wouldn't let me login! I was frustrated… but I waited just for you guys!


	12. Hospitality

**Foreword**: I'd like to say that I'm sorry. I should've had this posted earlier, but I couldn't finish it in time. I ate a bad batch of something, and wasn't feeling great last night, so I had to finish it today! Thanks for reviewing! I'm so glad that not _all _of you chewed me out for Ron being Harry's hostage… Surprisingly, some of you even enjoyed it! It really makes me proud that people like to read what I've written. Again, just a warning, I've jumped forward in time a slight amount. Probably about a day, though you'll see why soon.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything in the Harry Potter universe. I own a peculiar little story that won't have commercial success like the official books, since my version is simply a slightly less professional, incredibly amateur spin off. Thanks, JK Rowling. At least you gave me something to work with!

* * *

Harry awoke with a start, instantly sitting up, a decision which he promptly regretted, as bolts of agony shot through him, reverberating like echoes in a silent hallway. He errantly ran a finger down to his side, and felt the smooth cotton of bandages wrapped around his body. His mind was completely blank, as he didn't seem to have enough energy to muster up a coherent thought. His eyes were just beginning to re-adjust to the light in the Hospital Ward, and he glanced back down at himself once more, noting the small amount of red bleeding through the bandages.

Confused, his brow furrowed, and he seemed deep in thought for a moment, before glancing over to his left.

Starting at the foot of the bed, Harry could see that there was a person occupying it. His eyes slowly made their way upwards, his mind now semi-alert. Harry let out a cry, and leapt from bed, his aching and bandaged body forgotten, when he saw who was lying next to him, eyes closed.

"H-Hey!" He said frantically, gently shaking her, as if waking her from a deep sleep, "S-Stop fooling around… Hermione? _Hermione!_ Wake up!" Harry shook a little harder before he heard a voice from behind him.

"Harry Potter! You get back into bed _this instant!_" Madam Pomfrey, ever the stickler, made her way over to Harry, and pried him off of Hermione, "And for goodness' sake, let the girl rest in _peace!_"

Quite worried about Hermione, Harry protested, "But I feel fine! I don't need to get back int-" Harry was cut off, as his vision blurred and he felt light headed. He slumped back onto the hospital bed and cradled his face in his hands. Sheepishly, Harry said, "Well… perhaps I _should _rest up a bit…"

"Glad you see things my way. If you're up and about, doing _whatever _it is you children do these days, the treatments might start to reverse on you. You're mainly patched up, but you need _rest_ so that your body can finish the process itself!" she scolded, wagging an accusative finger towards Harry. "So _stay _in bed!"

Reluctantly, Harry swung his feet back onto the bed, and leaned up against the barred headboard, staring at Hermione. "What… What happened to us, Madam Pomfrey? How's Hermione doing? Is she hurt very badly?" His large green eyes flooded with concern, almost enough to drown anybody brave enough to stare into them.

The nurse folded her arms and began to speak, "When you w-"

"Perhaps it would be better, Poppy, if _I_ told Harry…" She was, however, cut off, by none other than Professor Dumbledore himself.

"You know the rules… I won't bend them… even for _you_," she said sternly, in an almost threatening voice.

"Yes, yes… I quite know the rules, Poppy," Dumbledore laughed as he settled into a chair near Harry's bed.

"Professor, h-how's Hermione?! Is she…" Swallowing the lump rising in this throat, Harry coughed to clear his shaky voice, "Is she hurt?"

"Just sleeping, Harry… Just sleeping." Dumbledore's calm voice had an obviously soothing effect upon Harry, as he visibly relaxed back on his bed, and stole one more glance at Hermione with a faint smile. "Her wounds were much less severe than yours were."

"Wait, she was hurt?! I-I don't even know what happened to us!" Harry, apparently frustrated with the current situation, struck the bed with his fist. "Argh! This is all my fault…"

"The second task, as I'm sure you remember, was in the Black Lake. You performed admirably, and rescued both Ronald Weasly and Gabrielle Delacour, younger sister to Fleur Delacour." Dumbledore smiled a bit, in spite of himself, and his attempt to keep a serious air about him. Sobering up, Dumbledore remembered how Harry was dragged back into the lake, with Hermione in tow, by a posse of angry Merfolk, each with pointed and very sharp weapons. "Harry, in saving Miss Delacour's sister, you angered the Merfolk, as it was not part of the scenario. Had it not been for Severus' swift intervention, the two of you might have surely perished."

"B-But Hermione's alright… right?!" He still was stuck on the fact that his actions had injured his friend.

"Yes, Harry. Miss Granger is in a potion-induced sleep, at the moment. She suffered only a few scrapes, and only one puncture wound, though it was very mild. You," Dumbledore's blue eyes flashed behind his silver, half moon glasses, and he said, "However, sustained much more grave wounds, including multiple puncture wounds, many deep cuts. It seems that while underwater, you managed to latch yourself onto Miss Granger, and shield her from most of the blows. In fact, you were stabbed completely through, and that is how she got _her _puncture wound."

Harry grimaced at the details, and glanced down at himself. Apparently, he had been magically cared for, and nursed back to health. "All of that happened? But… Shouldn't I still be…? How long have I been asleep for? And Snape?! Why would _he _save me?"

"That would be _Professor _Snape, Harry… He's quite an able wizard, and as I have proved multiple times. He is no longer a Death Eater…" Dumbledore cleared his throat and said, "Yes, well, you've been out for approximately two days. You've had plenty of visitors, I assure you. Miss Granger was awake merely two hours after her healing. Unfortunately, we were forced to… _sedate_ her. For being such a delightful and obedient person, Miss Granger really is quite stubborn. She refused to return to bed until you had woken up." As the ancient wizard smiled genially, his expression brightened, and he said, "However, I do believe it has begun to wear off."

Harry cocked an eyebrow and said, "Professor, how would you know about- Urgh!" He felt a body collide with him, and felt warm arms encircle him in a strong, vice-like grip.

"Harry James Potter, don't you_ dare _scare me like that again!" Hermione had her face buried in the crook of his neck, and was quivering somewhat. Until he felt tears dripping down onto his exposed neck, Harry had no idea what was wrong with Hermione. She hit the boy's arm as she continued to sob into his neck. "I-I thought you weren't…"

Harry placed his arms gently around Hermione and said, "I'm more worried about you, Hermione… if… if I hadn't… You wouldn't have… This is entirely my fault!"

Again, Harry felt himself get punched on the arm, "Don't you ever say that, Harry! What you did was right, regardless of what happened… You saved an innocent life, Harry!" She had pulled away from him only to scold him, then returned to the same position, sobbing with redoubled effort.

"Uh… erm… H-Hermione! Er, don't… Don't cry! Everything's okay, right?" His eyes shone with concern, elation, and hundreds of different emotions as he whispered to his friend, "Shh… I'm safe, Hermione. I'm safe…"

Wiping her eyes, the girl retracted from Harry and sat down next to him, on his bed instead. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to break down like that." Scolding herself, the book worm said, "Silly me… such an irrational thing to do. Crying doesn't help anything."

Dumbledore cleared his throat and said, "Ah, Miss Granger, but that is where you are wrong… for once. Crying is a human thing to do. It allows us to show our feelings in their purest forms, and can sometimes even help us to heal. Tears _are_ rational, because, simply put, logic is second priority to companionship."

Hermione jumped visibly, as she finally was made aware to the stealthy presence that was Albus Dumbledore. Her face flushed crimson, and she looked as though her face was ready to burst a blood vessel, she was blushing so hard.

Harry patted her hand, and gently said, "It's alright, Hermione… There's nothing to be ashamed of…"

She slowly nodded, her intense blush tapering off to a rosy color left in her cheeks.

The Gryffindor Champion grinned impishly and said, "Everyone… even _the _Hermione Granger, is wrong some of the time."

Hermione's smile slid off of her face, and was replaced by a scowl. "Harry James Potter!" She snarled, "That was _incredibly _uncalled for, you prat! I was torn up that you were so injured! Perhaps I shouldn't have _worried _if all you're going to do is insult me." Hermione huffed and folded her arms across her chest facing away from Harry. She wasn't _really _that angry with him… Hermione found it almost impossible to be angry with Harry lately… Though, since she _did _have a reputation to uphold, she played along anyway.

"H-Hey… I was just kidding, Hermione! I- er… um… S-Sorry, Hermione. Really!"

He looked ready to jump out of his skin in fright as Hermione glared at him from the side of her eyes, and scowled even more. "_Sure_. I believe _that _one, Harry." She turned away and felt a grin tugging at her mouth, though she fought with all her might to suppress it, and maintain a stern countenance. "_You_" she said, wryly, trying to keep an amount of severity in her voice, "are insufferable, and I do believe that I'm quite angry with you at the moment."

Harry looked downcast, and shook his head. He knew it wouldn't last for long, but he still felt bad about Hermione's reaction. He sighed, and crossly muttered, "_Girls_…"

"What was that, Harry?" Hermione rounded on him, and once again made sure that she looked absolutely harsh when looking at him.

Feigning innocence, Harry raised his arms in protest, saying, "N-Nothing! I didn't say anything, Hermione." At this point, he could see Hermione's scowl cracking into a smile, as she tried her best to repress laughter.

This was but a game to them. Something to lighten the mood, and distract them from the bleak realization that there was still one more task ahead of Harry, and that he was still somewhat injured.

But none of that mattered. For now, they were simply content to laugh.

'He most certainly _is _his father's son.' Dumbledore smiled cheerily and extended a hand. "Lemon Drop?"

* * *

**Author's Notes**: I know! I'm a horrid person. I should've had this out to you yesterday, and had Chapter 13 up tonight… Sorry that I couldn't. Really, I'm trying to keep up, but it's hard sometimes. So don't kick my face in _just _yet, haha. As you can see, Hermione and Harry are almost… gasp flirting! Aw, how cute…

But not too cute. There's still a loooong way to go between Harry and Hermione, haha.


	13. An Attempt to Understand

**Foreword**: I know… I know, I'm a punk for not updating earlier, but I got very sidetracked, and ended up going out with my buddies to see a movie, not to mention I came home to a massive brick wall I like to call "Writer's Block". Sorry! But I hope this doesn't disappoint you as well. I'm sorta lost when it comes to direction right now. I'm not sure how to play things off… Oh, and thank you. Everybody who reviewed, I like you a lot, haha. And Sophie! Thanks for writing that story! Glad I inspired somebody!

**Disclaimer**: No… As usual, I don't own anything, including characters, settings, or spells. Everything goes to J.K. Rowling, and if she so desired, I'd take this story down. Of course, she probably wouldn't do that, unless this became more popular than her books, which is quite doubtful… _quite_ doubtful.

* * *

_Debauchery! Scandal! The tale of a Domineering Girl who will do anything to attract a few eyes! One Hermione Granger, ever the plain and uninteresting know-it-all that she is, was admitted into the Hospital Wing at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, after faking injuries, simply to have a crack at the unconscious Harry Potter, famous, and quite easily manipulated, fame-seeking champion of the Triwizard Tournament. Capitalizing on the unconscious state of the Boy-Who-Lived, Granger seized and sucked dry (literally!) the opportunity, and used her time in pleasu_-

"I-I can't believe this." Harry was hysterical at the moment. Rita Skeeter, banned from Hogwarts grounds, _still _managed to peddle her semi-accurate smut to the Daily Prophet. Shaking with anger and disbelief, Harry could do nothing by laugh like a madman, as he clutched feverishly onto the newspaper.

Harry felt two pairs of hands steadily direct him to a sitting position, where his shocked, enraged face was still very much visible, though on a much steadier base.

"Glad to see you're-" Fred grinned, and patted him on the shoulder.

"So pleased with the Prophet." Both Fred and George were chuckling, as they knew what was obviously going to be labeled "Hogwarts' Hottest Gossip" for the next week or so.

Harry growled, and tore the paper into pieces, tossing it into the Gryffindor Common Room's fireplace. His Saturday was going perfectly. He woke up early, and felt good about it. He managed to actually clear away the homework that had been accumulating, and he had plans to actually get out and fly a bit.

Then the news came in.

Thankfully, Harry was in the Common Room, rather than the Great Hall, when the newspaper was dropped off. He was sure that everybody, regardless of who they were, would instantly find a way to look in his general direction.

He slumped. Harry's entire body sagged, and he closed his eyes, breathing slowly and heavily, in an attempt to calm himself down. He had just been released from the Hospital Wing the day before, and his entire chest, and upper torso was wrapped tightly in bandages, under his clothing. According to Madam Pomfrey, he was under strict orders to "not agitate his wounds, and to remain very cautious, while maintaining lots of bed rest." While Harry was the first to nix that idea, he also knew what problems could arise if he did too many vigorous things, such as the ones floating in his head.

Many of which involved hunting down Rita Skeeter, force her to publicly apologize to Hermione and then, after being satisfied with the apology, demolish her and her accursed quill. However, such a strenuous activity might wear his body down again, unfortunately for him.

"Does Hermione know about… _this_?" Harry pointed towards the flaming bits of the newspaper, and said it with disgust. He stood up and attempted to smooth down his wild hair, determined to not let this debacle destroy his otherwise perfect Saturday. 'This will all blow over… I can still have a normal day. I _know _I can.' Harry's thoughts were more doubtful than anything, as he attempted to assure himself of what was and wasn't within his grasps.

"Oh, of course she does." Fred lazily inspected his hands, and scratched at the back of his neck, where his hair ended, and his shoulders began.

Nodding, George glanced at Harry, and said, "She mumbled something then ran off-"

"To the Library. With the way her face was-" Fred's own countenance was beginning to brighten, and split into a grin, just like his brother's.

"You'd think she was sportin' the Gryffindor Scarlet!" George chuckled at the thought of Hermione's beet red face, after they broke the news to her.

Harry could only hear his breath moving in and out, as silence reigned between the three of them. He had calmed down considerably, and was seemingly placid, as Harry stood, with his arms folded across his chest. Shrugging, Harry began to walk towards the Portrait of the Fat Lady.

"Are you going to have another-"

"Secret rendezvous with-"

"A certain girl you happen to like?"

Both Fred and George were grinning like fiends, and simultaneously said, "_Hermione_, perhaps?" They stressed her name, and said it with sickly sweet voices, as though imitating star-crossed lovers.

"No…" Harry said sadly, his eyes betraying a sinking, lonely feeling. "I was… thinking about just going for a walk." He left the Weasly twins in a state of confusion, and trudged down the staircase, his brow knit with deliberation. Harry had no idea why he suddenly felt saddened, but, regardless, he did. He felt lonely, without his cheery friends keeping his spirits up… He felt abandoned.

Eyes blazing, Harry stared forward and mentally gave himself a stiff uppercut to the stomach. 'My friends would _never _abandon me… Well… at least Hermione wouldn't.' Harry shook his head and attempted to smile. "Shouldn't be thinking something like that…" Harry knew of the fierce loyalty his friends had, and it was one of the few things that he actually prided himself on. Though they might have spats at times, Harry knew that he could always depend on his best friends in a tight situation.

"Thinking? _You?!_" a dark, cold voice scoffed, with a bitter ring of harsh laughter to it. Black robes swished into view, and Snape's hard, black, beady eyes fastened on Harry. "I'm surprised that you're _able _to think, after all… you _are _a Potter."

Gritting his teeth, Harry closed his eyes and tried to calm himself down once more. After a few moments, Harry finally worked up the courage to speak. "Professor Snape… Erm… I wanted to thank you for… you know." Harry may have had the courage to speak, but he still, as always, lacked the skill to do it eloquently. Snape had saved his and Hermione's lives, something that had cast the Potions Master into a softer light. "Thanks for saving Hermione and I…"

Snape's face changed into an unrecognizable emotion, before reverting to a darker scowl than before. "If I had my way, I would have left you in the lake… I think you'd make quite the scarecrow, with enough tridents sticking out from your vital organs."

Harry had said it. He had thanked the one man that he _never _imagined thanking, in his entire life, second to Voldemort. Harry was proud of himself, as he was sure that Hermione, and his friends who knew what a _real_ man was, would be as well. Feeling like he had done the right thing, Harry simply nodded, and said, "Of course, Professor Snape… but still, thanks."

Harry felt a tug at his body, and then felt himself become disoriented for a moment. He felt as though one of his feet had been stapled to the air, holding him above the ground. Blinking a few times, Harry looked up, to see Professor Snape walking calmly along the ceiling, sheathing his wand.

"Shouldn't you get back to Miss Granger? After all, she _is _the only reason that you haven't died yet…" Snape muttered a few words along the lines of "unfortunately" and disappeared into a dark corridor.

Harry felt his body being taken hold by gravity, and he crashed to the ground, with a resounding thud on the ancient hewn stone of the Hogwarts' Stairwell. Apparently, Professor Snape had managed to use a spell silently, pinning him upside down in the air.

Shaken from the experience, Harry blinked a few more times, and tightened his fist. "You _try _to be nice to some people!" he swore, picking himself up off the ground, and continuing his trek down the stairs. He was _still _determined to take a walk, to clear his head, and get a breath of fresh air.

A few stair cases down, Harry encountered another person that he _quite _did not want to see. Ron Weasly. The redhead was exiting the Great Hall, with a glum look on his face, despite the food clutched in his hand.

Ron gulped a bit, and paled further, if that was at all possible. He shuffled nervously, and slowly said, "Erm… Hey, uh… Harry."

"Yeah, Ron." Harry said flatly. He wasn't in the mood to talk to Ron yet. If he thought that everything would be fixed, just because of the second task, he was wrong. The stitches were in place, but only time would bind the flesh.

"You… busy?" He had intentionally left off the usual "mate" that he tacked onto the end of many sentences addressed towards Harry.

Harry simply shrugged, and said, "Usual." He felt bad about being so curt with Ron, but he honestly just wanted to be alone at the moment. At least that's what he thought he wanted.

"Right… well… Er, I know things won't be fixed for a little while, but er… Screw it, thanks, Harry. You could've left me in that lake. You didn't. Thanks, ma- er… Thanks." Again, Ron intentionally left off the word "mate" from his sentence. Deep down, he felt as though he lost the right to call Harry a friend. However, Ron was willing to gain that right back, however he had to. Tentatively, Ron reached a hand out and sheepishly nodded.

Harry shook it quickly, and firmly, and then said, "Yeah… See you around, I guess, Ron." Shoving his hands into the pockets of his oversized jeans, Harry strode towards the courtyard, hoping to perhaps get a self-led tour on as much of Hogwarts as he had not seen.

"Harry."

Harry looked over his shoulder with a sigh, and skeptically fixed his sea-green eyes upon the redhead. "What now, Ron?"

"You uh… You saw the papers, right? I don't think Hermione's taking it as well as you, m- Harry." Ron shrugged, and walked away, knowing that he was imposing upon Harry's company. The _last _thing he wanted to do was irritate the one person that had been his friend, until Ron himself had screwed things up, royally.

Harry stood silently.

Harry stood alone.

He had what he wanted, at long last, with the cold wind blowing through his thick mat of black hair, gripping at him, as though to choke the existence out of him.

The Gryffindor boy, expected to be courageous beyond all else, cowered from himself, realizing that he did _not _want to be isolated. He wanted to be surrounded. Enveloped. Encircled. He wanted to be with someone who understood. Though he did not completely understand himself, the young man simply knew… he knew it was an issue of comfort.

Yet, Harry stood alone.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: I feel awful. I can't believe it's been so long since I updated. If you can find it in your hearts, forgive me, please. Writer's Block and I had to throw down… Thankfully, I came out on top, but that was just Round 1… I have a sinking feeling that there will be _many _more along the way, unfortunately. So once more, I hope to be able to update as swiftly as I used to. Please write a review, provided you have the time, even if it's only to curse me for my slowness, haha. 


	14. Sincerity

**Foreword**: Thank you, all of you who reviewed. Even the anonymous ones that I couldn't respond to, I thank you as well! Anyways, I'm glad you guys all liked the last chapter, and thankfully my writer's block has cleared up quite a bit, and I think I'll be able to do a bit more writing, thankfully. Again, I'm not sure how _long _this thing'll end up. I'm sorta trying to not think about that, simply because of the fact that it's daunting to even imagine this ending up really long. So I'll just ignore the length, and continue writing as long as you'll read for me!

**Disclaimer**: As always, I don't own anything in the universe of Harry Potter. Spells, Names, Characters, and other affiliated things all belong to J.K. Rowling. You can imagine the rest of the disclaimer, if there's something I forgot to cover, haha.

* * *

"You very are beautivul, Herm-one-ninny."

"Yeah, thanks…" Hermione rolled her eyes and continued reading, not even bothering to glance up at Krum. She was doing something quite important, and needed to concentrate. Had Harry been around, she would've asked him for help, though he had woken up much earlier than his usual habits had planned. Not wanting to disturb him, Hermione simply decided to shoulder the work-load by herself.

After all, Harry had enough on his mind as it was, without her adding more to it.

"Vaht… Vaht exactly is doing you?" Though Krum simply wanted to know what she was doing, his sentence structure came off _quite _awry, and packed with unintended innuendo.

Blushing furiously, Hermione fixed her brown eyes on Krum, with an irate glare. She closed her book and spoke with a forced control, "_What did you say!?_"

Stuttering under her wrathful stare, Krum tried to be clearer in his meaning, though he was unable, with his minimal command of the English language. "Eh… Ehm… Vhat is… doing you?"

Hermione's mouth thinned into a displeased frown, and she folded her arms, with the book over her chest. As she was about to speak, she was interrupted by yet another voice.

"Hey there. Hermione, right?" Cedric Diggory stepped closer to the two lazily, with his hands in his pockets. He always managed to make his entrance like from that of a movie, regardless of time or place. The Hufflepuff jerked a thumb towards Krum and said, "I think he was asking you what you were doing."

Krum quickly nodded, and noticed that Hermione relaxed considerably after hearing it said correctly.

"Well, nice to see you, Viktor, but I actually need to borrow Hermione for a minute." Cedric shrugged and glanced at Hermione, beckoning with his hand. He flashed one of his infamous smiles, and said to Hermione, "If that's quite alright with you, that is."

Had it been any lesser of a girl, they would have surely melted because of that smile. Hermione, however, was unfazed, and gladly followed the boy, thankful to get away from Krum and his irksome meddling. The book-worm thought back to Cedric's smile and randomly, a thought popped into her head. 'That smile reminds me of Sirius.' She quickly pushed the thought to the back of her head, making a mental note to remind Harry of his fugitive Godfather.

Cedric led Hermione out of the Library, and around a corner, where he turned abruptly. He put his arms out, and placed them on Hermione's shoulders, to keep her from bumping into him. "Whoa, whoa… Sorry about that. Shouldn't have turned around so quickly," he laughed.

Hermione chuckled a bit, and stepped backwards. "Perhaps." After a silent moment, she tucked the book she had borrowed under her arm, and said, "What was it you wanted, Cedric?" She suddenly felt nervous, for an unknown reason. Hermione realized that Cedric was awfully close to her, and that she was backed against a wall.

"Ah, nothing, really. Krum looked like he was taking the piss out of you. Just figured you'd want some way to get away from him, you know?" Cedric glanced around the corridor, making sure nobody was around, and leaned closer to Hermione. "I'd be careful around that guy… I don't get good vibes from him," he whispered.

"Er, okay, Cedric…" Hermione pressed against the wall, attempting to put some space between them. She just wasn't quite comfortable with all the closeness at the moment.

His eyes widened, as he realized, and instantly, Cedric took two great steps backwards. "Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry… I-I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable like that. I just didn't want anybody to overhear, you know?" The Hufflepuff looked deeply hurt, and he apologized profusely. "Seriously, I didn't mean that, Hermione."

She waved it away, perfectly comfortable, now that she had plenty of personal space. Hermione was exactly the type of girl who liked to have space between herself and others, especially since she was often tormented as a child for being such a book-worm. Unless she completely trusted a person, she preferred to have at least a bit of space. "I don't mean anything by it, Cedric. I mean, yes, you're quite a nice boy, but I just like to have a bit of breathing room."

"Well… Still, sorry about that. I'm just used to getting pretty close to people I talk to." He offered an apologetic smile, and then said, "Uh, how are you? You know… after the second task? There was… a lot of blood, you know? I tried to visit Harry and you, but nobody was let in."

"Thankfully, I didn't take much damage… Just a few scrapes. Harry though…" Her eyes darkened for a moment, and she lowered them to the floor. "He was… he was in a rough state…" Hermione tried her best to brighten up, and said, "But he's doing quite fine now!"

"I could imagine… When Snape used the Levicorpus spell to get you out of the water, and back onto the dock, I had to actually pull out one of the tridents stuck in his back." Cedric shuddered at the thought, and said, "He was holding onto you like a little kid. I just wanted to make sure the both of you were alright. I just haven't seen Harry yet today."

Hermione nodded in agreement, and they lapsed into silence for a short time. "Cedric… Harry told me that he's been speaking with you. You know, to calm down a bit. I just wanted to say thanks for that." Hermione's eyes danced with tenderness, as she continued, "He really needs it… Harry's just a boy. He needs all the support he can get, these days."

"He's a good kid." Cedric shrugged, and thought for a moment. "Hey, Hermione… You know _you're _doing a good job too, right? Harry's pretty thankful for that. I can tell, even if he doesn't say it."

Smiling at the memory of Harry's sincere words, the girl said, "Yes… He says it to me, which is quite nice, I'll admit. Harry's important to me. I wouldn't want to see him bogged down so badly."

"Just _how _important is he, Hermione?"

"I'm not sure I follow." Hermione raised an eyebrow and began to walk down the corridor, with Cedric following beside her.

Cedric shrugged, and said, "What do you think of Harry? What's between the two of you?" The boy quickly realized his mistake and amended his questions immediately, "I mean, if it's not what everybody thinks it is?"

Hermione thought for a while, silent, and pensive. "Respect… Friendship… There's a lot between Harry and I. It's… not something that's easy to describe. I love him, quite a lot. _However_, it's not like _that_… It's just…" Hermione fell silent for a time, and then plainly said, "It's an issue of comfort, between us."

"I think I understand, Hermione." Cedric inwardly frowned. 'It's there. They don't see it, though…' Cedric put a hand out, to pat her on the shoulder, but, remembering her closeness complex, opted to let it drop to his side instead.

"Um… Thanks for rescuing me from Krum. He's quite annoying… And again… Thanks for taking care of Harry. You're a good guy, Cedric." Hermione quickly gave him a friendly hug, and backed away.

Blown away, Cedric gaped. He understood how tough it must have been for Hermione to do such a simple thing, and he realized the gravity of what happened. There was now a trust between the two. "I'll watch his back, Hermione. Do what you can for him… You'll find he needs you more than you'd think… Tell Harry I said hi, will you?" Cedric stopped walking, and stood still in the hallway.

"I will, Cedric…" Making sure that he could not hear, Hermione softly added, "I always have…" She continued to walk down the corridor, hoping to find said Boy-Who-Lived.

'I don't know why I freaked out earlier…' Hermione mused, as she walked. 'I respect Cedric very much. He can see who Harry really is, unlike so many people.' She turned down a different corridor, and thought once more. 'What was that about Harry and I? I don't understand… Hah, I never thought I'd think something like _that_. I appreciate Harry as a friend, that's all… Quite a dashing one, but what does _that _have to do with anything?'

She suddenly felt herself bump into something, and immediately took a few steps backward. "Er, sorry about that."

"I've been looking for you, Hermione." Harry attempted to smile brightly, but simply found he couldn't. "I… Do you want to talk? You know… about the paper?"

"It's all lies, Harry… I _am _disgusted by it, however. I cannot believe somebody would stoop so low." She tucked some hair behind her ear, and walked alongside Harry, heading towards the Common Room.

"I just thought you might want to talk…" Harry fidgeted with his hands for a moment, and quietly said, "I do."

Hermione grinned, as they approached the portrait of the Fat Lady, and said, "I'm always open, Harry. Of course, I'll always be here to talk, if you need me." She glanced about, looking for people who could listen in, and leaned towards Harry. "I _do _have an interesting theory about Rita Skeeter, however…"

Uttering the password, the pair entered an empty Common Room, as most of the students were at the Great Hall for breakfast.

Harry sad down on the couch he enjoyed so much, and, folding his hands in his lap, frankly said, "Hermione, I thanked Snape today."

"That's very good, Harry. You've no idea how proud of you I am." She sat down next to him, and patted his knee, suddenly seeing Harry in a more mature light.

Harry nodded, and stared into the fire, mesmerized by the dance of the flames. "I don't know why, Hermione, but… I'm feeling down. I thought today would be such a good day, but… I can't explain it. I just feel so…" He trailed off, unable to cohesively say what he needed to.

Hermione scooted closer to Harry and placed an arm around him, pulling him closer to her. "I understand how you're feeling, Harry… Everything's just so tense around here. There's no way for you to relax, really. But don't worry… If you'll be patient, I have quite a surprise for you. Just try to hold on a little longer, Harry." She patted his shoulder reassuringly, and let go of him.

"You always know how to cheer me up," Harry said, trying his best to pull himself out of his self-wallowing. He chuckled a bit, and said, "I have no idea how you do it, but… thanks, Hermione. You mean a lot to me." Harry chuckled to himself for a moment, and said, "I… All these sappy words seem so useless, haha. They don't really seem to say what I'm feeling." The black haired boy focused his sea-green eyes upon Hermione and took her hand in his, softly placing a kiss on the back of her hand, and gently hugged her once more.

Blushing, Hermione felt her heartbeat racing, and she hugged him back. The girl beamed openly at Harry's tender sincerity. "You, more than anybody else, _deserve _it, Harry." That was it. Hermione made up her mind. She needed to talk to Sirius Black.

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**Author's Notes**: Well… There you have it. No worries though! I'm working on a direction! It's just a tiny bit slow to form. Please stick with it, and I'll do my best to get this show on the road! Please, if you have time, review my humble story! I'd very much appreciate it. 


	15. Ups and Downs

**Foreword**: I'd like to thank everybody that reviewed, signed and anonymous! I'm glad you guys approved of the last chapter. Again, I'm writing this story for all you people who read my stories, and I'm incredibly surprised that so many people have done so, and actually left reviews! I'm eternally indebted to you, for choosing my humble story, written with mediocre skill. And, on with the show!

**Disclaimer**: As always, I don't own anything that J.K. Rowling has already created, or anything crazy like that. If I did, you'd most certainly be the first people I'd inform! We'd be revamping Deathly Hallows, for sure… Moving on! Imagine a bunch of legal jargon here, and you'd get the same effect as the Disclaimer.

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Hermione laughed, as she read the front page of the Daily Prophet. It was the only thing she could do to keep from breaking down and crying, in front of the entire school. Almost an entire week had passed, and it was now a Friday.

_Hermione Granger, Fame Parasite Extraordinaire! The muggle-born witch, though incredibly plain and quite annoying, has used a plethora of dark and evil spells to garner the attention of Harry Potter, Viktor Krum, and even Cedric Diggory! These three boys all had 'encounters' with Miss Granger. Krum in the Library, Diggory, in the Hallway, and Potter, on a couch. These events were far from innocent, as each time she used her wily magic to force the three lust-filled champions into encounters of an explicitly se-_

The newspaper was taken from her hands, and torn into shreds. Harry glanced over Hermione's shoulder, and set his breakfast down. The entire Gryffindor table watched in mild surprise as none other than Neville Longbottom tore the paper into bits.

He stood up as tall as he could, and puffed his chest out, in an attempt to look brave, and defiantly said, "I-I don't b-believe any of th-this!" Of course, being timid, and not a great public speaker, Neville barely managed to get out his statement, without blushing and stumbling through it. "H-Harry and Herm-m-mione are friends of mine! I-I don't th-think they'd do anything l-like this!"

The entire assembly of Hogwarts' School of Witchcraft and Wizardry stared blankly at the young man, who quickly sat down in embarrassment.

A murmur quickly crashed around through the room, as a wave breaking against the sea shore. Everyone was speaking in hushed voices, in an attempt to hide their conversations from one another.

Malfoy stood up from his seat at the Slytherin table, and shouted with a sneer, "I believe it! That little mudblood tried to touch _me _even! What a filthy, little, mudblood slu-"

Harry had vaulted over the Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff tables, and leapt towards Malfoy, only to be intercepted, _physically_, by Cedric Diggory, who was, thankfully, looking out for the young man's best interests.

Ron Weasly, however, had already been near Draco, at the beginning of the shouting, for unknown reasons. He reared back an arm and sent one of his pale fists directly towards Malfoy's face, hoping to punish the pureblood enthusiast.

The problem was, Ron simply wasn't fast enough.

Before the redhead could lay one across the boy, Malfoy was already out of reach. In fact, he was seemingly pinned to the ceiling, where he dangled like a rag-doll. "Constant vigilance!" came the all too familiar scream. Mad Eye Moody hobbled into the room with his magic eye darting all around. "_You_, Mister Malfoy, would have been dead, had it not been for Diggory's and my intervention. Next time you won't _be _so lucky," the grizzled Auror growled, shaking his wand, and effectively, shaking Malfoy as well to express his meaning more visually. He lowered the blonde Slytherin and simply let him fall the last few feet, onto the cold stone floor.

"M-My father will hear of th-this!" Malfoy blubbered, as he scrambled to his feet.

"Good! Send that no-good Death Eater right to me! I'll gladly cash in on the chance I had to kill him when I _should_ have!" Alastor Moody started towards Malfoy once more, but the young man bolted, instantly dashing for the exit of the Great Hall. The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor followed after him, keeping his magical eye focused on the young Slytherin boy.

Cedric finally let go of the fuming Harry, and said, "Calm down, Harry. Malfoy's not worth it…"

Harry opened his mouth to speak, but Cedric cut him off, "Yes, I _know _Hermione's worth it. But still, you can't go around pulverizing everybody who says something like that."

Frowning, Harry folded his arms and reluctantly nodded, "Yeah, yeah… Alright. I can't stand it though… Before I know, it _this_ will be in the headlines too."

"Don't sweat it, Harry." Cedric shuffled away, with a wave, and returned to his seat next to Cho Chang, his girlfriend. The girl glanced at Harry sympathetically, and then shot a disgusted look at Hermione. Apparently, she _did _believe the news.

Returning to Hermione's side, Harry glumly stared at the table, trying to avoid Hermione's gaze. "Harry James Potter!" She cried, folding her arms across her chest in a huff, "I can _not _believe you did something so irresponsible. We're supposed to be role models for the younger students."

Harry bit his lower lip, to keep himself from saying something that he would likely regret. He simply nodded dumbly, and took a seat next to his friend.

Hermione scooted closer to him, and whispered, "Though I do appreciate the gesture, Harry… I'm glad _somebody_ thinks enough of me to defend what little honor I have left."

"That's what friends do." Harry offered a smile, and put his hand over hers for a moment, squeezing lightly.

Hermione whipped around, and said, "And _Neville_! That was positively _brilliant_, especially since you have trouble with public speaking." She smiled at the boy, and nodded. "You're a good friend, Neville… Not many people would stick up for _us_- er… Harry and I like that."

He blushed and stared into his lap, "W-Well, Gran said I should stop being so timid, and actually, um… Stand up for once."

"You've done a good thing, Neville." Harry grinned at the other boy and nodded, extending a hand to shake the timid Gryffindor's hand. "Your Gran's probably as proud as we are."

Neville shook Harry's hand solemnly and quickly excused himself. "I-erm… I have to go." Simply unused to being the focus of such compliments, Neville did the only thing he could do to avoid embarrassment. He simply extricated himself from the situation, with a look of pride on his face.

Of all the people in the Gryffindor House, Neville was the paradigm. Selfless bravery, in the face of tough situations, despite what you may face as a consequence. Neville Longbottom was growing into a strong young man, despite his weak façade. After the incident with the Daily Prophet, Neville had gained a little bit of confidence, helping to support his otherwise shaky mind.

On his way out of the Great Hall, he tripped over his own feet, and out of the room, with a tiny squeak of surprise and discomfort, utterly destroying whatever confidence he had left, as he quickly picked himself up with a massive blush and shuffled from the room.

Harry winced at Neville's spill, and muttered, "Poor guy…"

Hermione glanced down at her watch, and said, "Harry, we should be going… You _know_ today's a Hogsmead day."

Harry frowned and folded his arms, "I know, I know… I was hoping _you _didn't remember though." He took a last bite of his egg sandwich, and stood up from the table, walking in the direction Neville headed in, with Hermione in tow.

"Now Harry, I figured you would enjoy going to Hogsmead!" The girl raised an eyebrow, and continued, "You would have the chance to relax, and treat yourself to something nice."

The young man grinned mischievously, and said, "Nice as in _Zonko's_ nice?" He would relish the opportunity to distract himself with such practical jokes… And distract Hermione. Harry grinned even broader at the thought of playing a joke on Hermione. A safe, harmless one, but a joke nonetheless. The Boy-Who-Lived imagined his classmate faking her anger, just to get Harry to apologize.

"Maybe not _that _nice," Hermione chuckled. She had a sixth sense about things like this. There was no doubt that Harry was going to attempt something, if he was allowed into the infernal dungeon that was Zonko's Joke Shop.

They proceeded in silence for a while, and Harry quietly said, "Do… we really _have _to go, Hermione…?"

The girl glanced at him, and noted the downcast look controlling his face. She knew something was bothering him, obviously. She simply couldn't place it at the moment. "Harry…" she started.

"It's just… All those people will be there… I don't want to have to deal with all of that. They're going to recognize who I am… who you are. I don't want to face all that right now." He pleaded with her, "Can't we just stay in, and sit by the fire? O-Or anything! I'll even do my homework, if I have to!"

Rolling her eyes, the bookworm said, "Heavens _know_ I alreadycoerced you into finishing your homework, Harry. You finished it all last night…" Feigning anger, Hermione jabbed an accusatory finger into the center of his chest and said, "_You_ forced me to stay up late to review it all with you, _remember_?"

"No…" Harry uncorked one of the genuine smiles that were rarely shown to the world, and replied, "I _charmed _you into reviewing it with me. You just can't resist my cleverness."

"Harry Potter? _Charming_?" Hermione laughed at the prospect, and said, "This is coming from the boy who almost asked a _couch _to the Yule Ball."

"H-Hey…!" Harry opened his mouth, but closed it, as nothing resembling a good comeback entered his mind.

Hermione patted him on the shoulder and grinned. "It's alright, Harry… You may be a bit shy, but at least you're not a prat."

"Why thank you!" He smiled brightly, attempting to lighten the mood. He was tired of moping around like a toddler in time-out. "So does that mean that we _can _stay in today?" There was a hopeful tone in his voice, and a gleam in his eye.

"Harry?"

"Yeah, Hermione."

"Do you trust me?"

"What do _you _think?" After receiving a glare from the girl, he amended his acerbic comment, and solemnly nodded. "Yeah…"

Hermione simply took his hand.

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**Author's Notes**: Umm… There you have it. That's Chapter 15. It was very short, I know, and I'm very sorry about that. I was finished with that chapter, however, and for artistic purposes, I had to cut it short, otherwise I wouldn't be satisfied! I know there was a big, random spiel about Neville in there, but that's because I think he's a good character. I plan on using him in the future. So, if you have time, please review for me! I'd enjoy that very much. 


	16. Normalcy

**Foreword**: Thank you. Yes, you. I appreciate that you're reading this story, and I really think that you should know that _you _are the reason I continue to write. As long as there's an audience that wants me to write this, I guess I'll continue as much as I can. Well, one for the money, two for the show, three to prepare, and it's time to go.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own the rights to anything J.K. Rowling has created, unfortunately. Perhaps if somebody manages to send a Time-Turner my way… yes, that would be quite good. I'd get to fix up all the mistakes that she made, ha ha.

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**Chapter 16: Normalcy**

Harry grumbled as he walked beside Hermione, through Hogsmeade village. He was not thrilled to be there, but he _had _promised Hermione. "Um, Hermione? Can we make a few stops?"

Hermione pursed her lips and let out a sigh, "Okay _fine_, Harry… just _lighten _up will you?" Ever-patient in regards to Harry, his doom and gloom attitude was even beginning to take its toll on his bookish friend.

Hair tousled by the brisk wind, Harry motioned towards his pants, and said, "Er… I need a belt. Dudley's old clothes don't exactly… stay on me." He removed his other hand from the pocket of the baggy jeans and held his hands to his side. The jeans slowly trickled down Harry's hips, and began to fall, before the young man returned his hand to the pocket, and replaced the pants around his waist.

Blushing furiously, Hermione averted her eyes. "Yes, perhaps that _would _be a decent enough stop." The two stepped into Madam Malkin's, and Harry frowned ruefully as he searched for a belt in vain.

Hermione, in the farthest, darkest corner of the store, called out, "Harry! I've found them!" Quietly, she complained about the thick coat of dust that had layered onto the leather belts, as they were apparently not frequently bought, or even handled.

Finding his way through the maze of clothing, Harry finally pinpointed the location of his friend's voice, and took a place next to her. He simply stood there, looking at the belts, apprehensive to do anything, since he wasn't exactly sure _what _to do.

"Well? Try one on, Harry. You _do _need a belt that fits, after all…" She frowned a bit, remembering all of the trouble Harry usually gets into, and how well his clothes tended to stand up to the rigors of life. She amended her statement rather unceremoniously, placing a pointed look right at her friend. "Perhaps two or three."

"R-Right…" Harry quickly eyed the belts, and pulled one off of the rack that seemed about the right size, and put it around his waist for a measurement. Noticing that it was quite too long, Harry instead replaced the belt with a much smaller one, which fit a bit _too _tightly. "Er… Perhaps that one was a bit too small."

"What clued you in on _that _one, Harry?" Hermione chuckled at her friend, and playfully shoved him.

Smirking deviously, Harry plucked the most monstrous belt he could find off of the rack, and strung it through the belt-loops in his jeans, buckling it at the front. "Too big?" He grinned widely as his jeans dropped to the floor with an airy swoosh, leaving him clothed only in his boxers, and a shirt.

"Harry James Potter!" Hermione shrieked in embarrassment, her melodious laughter permeating the exclamation. "You're in the presence of a _girl_! Make yourself _decent _at the very least!"

"I think it fits like a charm!" Harry began to wade towards the front desk, with his pants around his ankles, laughing like a fiend. And for the first time in a long time, the cloud of doubt, fear, and death hanging over Harry's head lifted, allowing only sunshine to break through, flooding everything with light.

For a moment, Hermione allowed herself to bask in the light, before realizing, with quite a bit of dread, that Harry was half exposed, in a public place. "Harry James Potter, get back here this instant!"

The black haired boy's green eyes danced with mirth, and he gleefully asked, "And if I don't?"

"I'll study more." Seeing Harry's eyebrows raise in concern, she knew that the young man was on the ropes, and closed in for the kill. "Permanently."

Harry frowned and muttered, "Spoil-sport…" He grinned and pulled the oversized jeans back onto his body, and removed the massive belt. Instead, he settled for one that actually fit for a change.

Hermione rolled her eyes, and shoved a few more belts into his hand, that were the same size. "After everything you put your clothes through, you'll _need _extras… besides. You can't _always _wear a black belt… It'll clash horribly with some clothes."

"Heh, you know me, Hermione. I'm such a fashion king. I know _all _about color schemes, clashing and all that." Harry chuckled and slung the belts over his shoulder, as the pair made their way towards the front desk.

"Oh _shut up_, you prat." Hermione rolled her eyes again, allowing another musical laugh to escape from her mouth. "I may be a bit bookish, but even _I _am not _that _ignorant of fashion… I _am _a girl, after all."

"I thought you were Hermione." He felt himself lurch forward, as the curly haired girl shoved him flippantly.

They approached the front counter of Madam Malkin's, and immediately placed the belts on the desk. It was surprising that there was no line, as Madam Malkin's was quite the popular place for girls to be, on their trips to Hogsmeade.

A young man, probably fresh out of school, sat at the desk looking dreadfully bored. "That all for you two today?" he said, examining the belts as though he had never seen them in his life.

"Yep, that'll do it. Thanks!"

"Uhh…" The young man scratched at his dark hair, and his dark brown eyes probed the belt once more, looking for something like a price tag. Finding none, he said, "Uhh… Yeeeah… We're gonna need a price check on this…" He held up his pointer finger, asking for a moment silently, and turned to a massive catalogue on the desk next to him, rifling through it quickly.

Harry produced a small pouch of money from his oversized pockets, and glanced inside, making sure he had plenty of cash, which he did.

"Uhhhhhh…" The young man's blank stare and prolonged noise of confusion, ceased, and he brightened up for a moment. "Yeah, we're uh… having like, a five for five deal or something like that on these." It was quite obvious that there was no such deal. The clerk was just setting a price for items that were hardly ever purchased.

"Five _galleons?!_" Hermione said, incredulously, gaping at the ridiculous price.

"You kiddin' me? Five knuts… You'd have to be crazy to buy somethin' like this for five galleons." The clerk laughed, and said, "I think you're probably the first person this _century _to buy one of these things… I don't even know what it _is_, but I figure it can't be _that _expensive."

Again, Hermione gaped, "Five _knuts_? That's…" She refrained from saying "dirt cheap" as she had originally wanted to, and simply closed her mouth, shrugging. "Well, Harry… Pay the man."

As Harry placed the money on the counter, the clerk squinted and took a careful look at the both of them. "Waaait a second… I know you. You're Harry Potter, and you're Hermione Granger, right?"

The two Gryffindors stiffened, and stared rigidly at the slapdash man, as he straightened his uniform. The clerk sympathetically looked at them and shook his head. "That Skeeter woman has _waaay _too much free time on her hands." He took the money, and said, "Well, come again… Doubt those strips of leather are going anywhere for a while."

They quickly fled the store, happy that the man hadn't been a firm follower of Rita Skeeter's infamously disparaging articles.

Harry noticed the hushed whispers and pointing fingers as he walked down the sidewalk with Hermione, and for once he simply didn't care. He blinked, and breathed in the fresh air of February, deciding to take Cedric's advice, and not sweat the little things. Instead, he savored the feeling of the cool air threading its way between his fingers, as he was now free to let his hands dangle at his sides, rather than spending his time holding up the ragged, hand-me-down pants that Dudley used to fit into.

His bookworm friend took the lead, staying half a step ahead of Harry, as she led him away from Hogsmeade, and towards the fringes of the forest surrounding it. Hermione sat down on a large boulder and glanced up at a rocky ridge up a sloping mountain.

"Er, I'm glad you brought me here today, Hermione… I haven't had much time to laugh lately." Harry took a seat next to the girl and smiled for a moment, as he patted her hand. "It's nice to stop feeling like the world is trying to kill me once and a while."

Reciprocating his look, Hermione nodded, "I know what you mean, Harry… Times like this are rare, and should be treasured as much as possible, while they last." Comfortable silence set in for a moment, as they looked down on the quaint village of Hogsmeade, buzzing with activity.

Harry shifted, and folded his hands in his lap. "Hermione, it's nice out here, but… if you don't mind me asking, why are we sitting on a rock?"

"Do you still trust me, Harry?" Her brown eyes stared directly into the sea-green pools of Harry's own eyes, and she devoted her attention to the boy.

"No. I think you're going to lure me into the woods, kill me, desecrate and _then_ dump my body." Harry grinned, as he felt Hermione elbow him lightly in the ribs. "Yes, yes… You _know _I trust you, Hermione."

She silently took his hand, and led him up the gently sloping mountain, towards the rocky ridge she had been eying earlier. With relative ease, the duo made their way to the spot, and stood at the mouth of the crack in the mountain.

"Harry, I've been meaning to tell you about this, but I wanted it to be a surprise for you. If you had known, it would've ruined it all." Letting go of his hand, the girl took a few steps into the darkness of the hole in the side of the mountain.

Harry watched in silence as Hermione entered the cave, and began to come back out, moments later, with a man at her side.

"Hello, Harry."

Harry rushed up to Hermione and the man standing next to her, and embraced them both keenly, with a bright smile gracing his face.

**

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**: I bring sad news… Very sad news indeed. I have started school, unfortunately. That means I'll be trying to balance a bunch of stuff on top of updating frequently. I'm really sorry, but sometimes, I just might not get to update every night, like I've been trying to do. Well, that being said, how did you like the chapter? And how many of you knew it was coming? Haha, well… If you have some free time, please drop me a review. I'd love to have your input! 


	17. Hook, Line, And Sinker

**Foreword**: Thanks for reviewing everybody! I'm glad you found a bit of time to give me some feedback! Also, it took me a little bit to get this chapter done, because I was busy keeping up with some stupid essays we had to write for English class. I did very well though, so at least my efforts weren't in vain. Glad you all understand my school's demands, haha. Anyway, this chapter picks up right where the last one left off, so enjoy!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Harry Potter, or anything affiliated. If I did, the story would've changed quite dramatically… and I'd have added in an amazing character into the story. Haha, he'll be showing up later. My challenge to you guys: Guess who this character is. I've mentioned him earlier in the story. I want to see if anybody's going to get it right, haha. I don't own that guy either… He's not an original character, per se.

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**Hook, Line, and Sinker**

Sirius Black, gaunt and pale, grinned as he hugged his godson. "Good to see you, Harry. It's certainly much nicer to see you in the flesh than talking to you through those letters. I appreciate them all, by the way."

"Sirius! You never told me you were so close! You never said you were going to be back in England!" Harry turned to Hermione and passionately hugged her as well. "Hermione, thank you. _Thank you_! I-I can't believe you orchestrated this!" He somehow managed to redouble his efforts, almost forcing all of the oxygen from his friend's lungs. "You convinced me to come, even when I didn't want to… I can't thank you enough!"

Sirius laughed loudly, as Hermione's face flushed bright red. "Hah! It seems those articles in The Prophet are _half _true, at least!" The older man grinned deviously and said, "I can't believe it, Harry… and _Hermione_! I never would've guessed you'd let 'im do anything like that."

The two current Gryffindors separated quicker than lightning, and Harry scowled, "It's not like that, Sirius… _You _of all people should know _that_… I mean, I've already _told _you that Hermione and I are just great friends!" Harry seemed incredibly confident of his answer, but after a moment, his eyes fell, and he faltered. "… Right, Hermione?"

As always it was up to Hermione to speak with absolute certainty. "Yes, Harry…" She rolled her eyes, and said, "As if I would _allow _anything like _that_ to happen between Harry and I, Sirius… That would do nothing more than distract me from my studies, which I can't be falling behind in! I've only this year, and next to prepare for O.W.L.s."

"Heaven forbid that you slip in your studies, and end up missing a question, of course!" Sirius chuckled and sat down on one of the larger rocks inside the cave. "Then again, I'm sure you still manage to find enough time to keep your… Ahem, _extracurricular_ _activities_," Sirius grinned broadly at the notion and continued, "with dear, old Harry."

Both Harry and Hermione turned bright red, and seemed to glow in the dim light cave. "Stop it, Sirius!" Harry grumbled and sat next to his godfather, "You're having too much fun teasing us… No _wonder_ Dumbledore wants you hidden away."

Padfoot got Harry into a playful headlock and shook his departed friend's son. "Oh, that was _too _harsh, Harry." The ex-convict let go and crossed a leg over his other one, leaning against the cool stone walls of the cave. "So how are things _really_?"

Harry shrugged, and said nothing, relegating the open-ended question to Hermione instead.

"Well, I've devised a quite rigorous study program, to keep my mind as sharp as possible, for the O.W.L. examinations coming up. With the chart I've drawn up, I can divide my time more thoroughly and equal-" Seeing that both Harry and Sirius stared at her blankly, Hermione paused awkwardly for a moment, and meekly offered, "Um… I've been helping Harry with his homework, so he's not always behind anymore."

Sirius frowned and folded his arms. "Harry! I can't _believe _you! You're actually _doing _your homework!?" He shook his head in faking a solemn attitude, "You're bringing shame to the Potter name, Harry… James would be _so_ disappointed."

"I'm sure his _mother _would quite approve," Hermione glowered, taking the issue seriously. "Honestly! Without a good work ethic, Harry could be left behind, and runs the risk of doing poorly on his O.W.L.s, and even his N.E.W.T.s! Without satisfactory grades, he'll never get a good job!"

The young man's face was drained of its color, as the overwhelming realization hit. He would need to get a job, eventually. And if he didn't do well, he may as well end up homeless! While Hermione ran the entire world doing _whatever _she decided to do Harry would be a beggar, and have to resort to thievery to surviv-

"Hermione, Hermione, Hermione… What are we going to do with you?" Sirius chuckled, as he scratched at his scraggly face. "You're only fourteen! You won't have to worry about a job for _quite _some time, little lady. Just relax a little… It won't kill you."

"It would only just rough her up a little. A scrape here, a cut there, with the occasional broken bone." Harry readjusted his glasses and laughed, as he winked at Hermione, teasing her further. "You know how it is with Hermione, Sirius. Always getting herself into trouble."

"It's because of the people I associate with, unfortunately," the girl grumbled. "Maybe if I had _normal _friends, then I wouldn't almost die, every other weekend." Hermione pointedly stared at Harry, and motioned with her head, "It's because of _you _that I've had to spend so much time in the Hospital Wing this year, and in the past years."

"I-I'm not _that _bad…" Harry sullenly fidgeted with his fingers, and said, "If it's any consolation, I never wanted you to get hurt…"

Rolling her eyes, Hermione exclaimed, "Goodness no, Harry! I'm always in the Hospital Wing looking after _you!_ It's hardly ever me…" She paused for a moment, and then thoughtfully added, "And I don't think we would be too great of friends if you actually _wanted_ me to be hurt."

"Aw, how cute!" cried Sirius, attempting the high-pitched, squeaky voice of a school girl, despite the fact that his normally gravelly, deep, voice did not translate well into the emulation. "It's so romantic that you watch over him so closely!"

Harry elbowed Sirius in the side, and protested, "We already _told _you! That's not how things are!"

Sirius could do nothing but laugh at them, and their own ignorance.

-

Harry and Hermione both bade Sirius goodbye, each giving the older man a hug, and began to head towards Hogsmeade again, since it was starting to get late.

Before his godson had managed three steps, Sirius pulled him back for a moment. "Harry, I need to talk to you for a second…" He had a very critical air about him, giving the impression that this was not the typically lighthearted conversation they were going to have.

Harry waved to Hermione, who had turned around, telling her to go on without him, and that he would catch up, using only that simple hand signal. "What is it, Sirius?" He turned to his father's friend, and stared him evenly in the eye.

"What's _really _between you and Hermione?" Sirius, seeing that Harry had begun to complain, cut him off quickly, "In all honesty! I don't want you to lie to me, Harry… You can trust me. You know you can."

Harry simply shrugged, and averted his eyes. "I… I don't know. I really don't know at this point, Sirius. I just can't be sure, with all that's been happening. It doesn't leave much time to think, really."

"I see…" Sirius let the subject drop for the moment, and said, "Well… on James' and my own behalf, you're at the prime age to start getting in good with the ladies. However, unfortunately, our opinions don't matter at all. Lily always overrode us, despite the two to one vote ratio…" Sirius grumbled under his breath, "Slave driver, she was…" The scraggly man shook his head, and grinned, expelling those thoughts. "You can imagine what _she_ would say… Just think of six different women nagging you about school work, and being successful for hours on end, with no reprieve, and you'll get about the same effect."

"No time, Sirius," Harry chuckled, commenting on Sirius' suggestion. "I'm always so busy, lately. I have to deal with the Tournament, and all my classes, not to mention _homework_, though it's a little easier now that Hermione's helping me. I guess it pays to have initiative."

"Don't study _too _much, Harry. You've got a name to uphold! It's your duty to at _least _play a few pranks, now and again." Remembering 'the good old days', Sirius' face split into a grin, remembering how they had tormented the staff of Hogwarts with their gags. "Besides… It's nice to take a break from all that high-maintenance stuff and just relax."

"That's what today was, Sirius… I actually had a good time." The boy with glasses glanced down towards Hogsmeade, and smiled, as he saw Hermione kneeling on the ground to tie the wayward laces of one of her shoes. "I'd best be going though… I promise I'll write you, and try to visit, now that I know where you are." Harry once again hugged Sirius.

The two parted, after a brief moment. "Don't just stop in for surprise visits, Harry. I'm supposed to be in hiding, remember? We'll always have to make sure it's safe to meet." Sirius swatted at a bug zipping around his face, and once more let out a roguish smile.

Messy black hair flapping in the wind, Harry only nodded, as he ran quickly towards Hermione, in order to catch up with his friend.

-

Grinning impishly, Harry secretively ducked behind one of the shelves in Honeydukes' Sweets Shop. He had fully taken Sirius' advice to heart. It was _definitely _time to play a little prank.

He pulled a tiny vial off of one of the racks, and a package of Hermione's favorite: Lemon Drops. Their combined cost was relatively little, and thankfully, Harry had managed to convince Hermione that there were perfectly healthy treats in the far corner of the store, so he didn't need to worry about her seeing him check out.

He glanced around, double checking that Hermione was not near him in the crowded store. Gaining ambiguity from the bustling crowd of Hogwarts' students, Harry quickly plucked a lemon drop from the package, and smirked at the red vial in his hand. "Fiji Fire Fluid? Heh… Sounds brilliant… bit of a tongue twister though." Surprisingly, despite the red vial, the liquid was clear, and odorless, so when Harry smothered the lemon drop in it, there was almost no indication, except for the dampness.

Harry Potter threw away the vial, and grinned with the Fire Drop in his palm, as he made his way towards the far corner of the store.

Hermione was sitting on a stool, browsing through the titles of each of the candies, trying to decide whether or not she should risk her teeth developing a cavity, for the sake of candy. Apparently, her teeth were more important, as she folded her arms across her chest and shrugged, mumbling to herself, "Mum and Dad wouldn't be happy…"

"Lemon drop?" Harry beamed, as he held open his palm.

She returned his smile with a look of pleasure, and gladly said, "Why thank you, Harry. That was quite thoughtful of you." The bookish girl brushed her curly hair away from her face, and accepted the candy, popping it into her mouth.

Harry had tricked her, and she had fallen for it.

Hook. Hermione's face began to heat up, as her entire body seemed to flush a pink color.

Line. She had begun to sweat, though in that instant she was unaware of why.

And Sinker. The intensity of the heat of the Lemon Drop suddenly registered, and the girl let out a cry, spitting the candied lava into a trashcan tucked neatly in the corner.

It burned intensely for a good five minutes. Five minutes that Harry spent having a massive bout with laughter. While she suffered in agony at the wrath of the blazing spices, Harry had the nerve to actually _laugh_.

After calming down, the both of them passed an awkward moment of silence between them. In that moment, Harry began to feel uneasy, regretting what he had done. He should have thought of the consequences before acting. He _knew _that Hermione was a patient person generally. He _also _knew that once riled up, Hermione had a _very _volatile temper.

"Harry?" The girl folded her hands in her lap, and smiled beautifully.

Things were beyond bad, for the young man. When Hermione got angry, she usually called him by his full name, however, she had simply called him Harry this time, which gave him a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Y-Yeah?" said Harry warily, stealthily creeping away from the girl. In that instant, he immediately regretted tricking Hermione into tasting the loaded lemon drop, no matter _how _funny it was.

In an overly sweet voice, used to hide the fire deep within her voice, Hermione said, "I suggest that you start running."

**

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**: Well, there you have it. This was actually a longer chapter, believe it or not… I was indifferent about this chapter… Not my best, but not my worst. Yes, it was quite slow too. Things'll start to pick up soon though, I think. Uhh, tell me how I did, please. I enjoy all your reviews, and I love to hear from you! If you have time, please let me know how I'm doing with this story. 


	18. Despite It All

**Foreword**: Thank you all, for the kind words. I'm glad that you guys appreciated the chapter, and I'm also glad that some people pointed out what seemed to fit and what didn't. I appreciate that wholly, and I'm glad that you criticize my work. It can only help me to deliver a satisfactory story, so thanks!

**Disclaimer**: Ah yes… My favorite part. As usual, I don't own anything that J.K. Rowling created. I'm just a kid with almost nothing to his name, haha. Only thing I can do is write a little bit, but only on good days. Any resemblance of anything original to something in real life is coincidental, basically. I try not to base too much stuff off of my actual life. I'd feel sorta pretentious. My life's not worth reading about, haha. If I did _that_, the entire story would be a pretty boring, monotonous type of thing.

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**Despite It All**

Tension.

That would be the correct word to describe the feeling between Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. It had been an entire week and a half since she had said more than two words strung together to the boy. She was apparently still quite upset over the malicious act of cruelty that Harry had managed to use to victimize her.

Hermione was propped in her seat, with a charcoal pencil dancing in her hand. The piece of parchment she had resting on a slate of wood, giving her a hard surface for her aimless doodling. She, as always, had finished her homework, and was ahead of schedule, as always, in her studies. Stuck with nothing to do, except twiddle her thumbs, the bookish girl decided to doodle a bit, though her drawings were many levels above the typical doodle.

Glad that Harry was nowhere to be found, the girl continued to stare out a window in the Gryffindor Common Room, carefully, and accurately producing an analytical drawing of a few trees. It was quite nice for some peace and quiet. These days, such moments were tough to come by, and Hermione was determined to savor every minute of it. The library had become a frequently visited place by one Harry Potter, in order to find her. Despite his groveling, apologizing, and pleading, Hermione would hear none of it.

She hadn't been genuinely angry with him for a few days, but it was time to let the young man learn his lesson. Though she wasn't furious with Harry at the moment, she was still quite upset that he would pull something like that on her. She had been expecting quite more from him.

Hermione sighed, and closed her eyes. 'He just had to go and ruin such a sweet moment… Harry can be such a git, sometimes.' The sun was going down quickly, and Hermione was running out of light, making her observations and drawings much less accurate than they would have been in good lighting.

Rolling up the parchment, and tossing it into the fire, Hermione made her way up towards her dormitory, reminiscing on the events that had transpired between the two, after Harry had tricked her into tasting a fiery lemon drop.

_- Flashback -_

Harry stared nervously at his friend, with guilt hanging over his head like a black cloud, casting a bleak shadow over his previously bright day.

Lips pursed tightly, Hermione slowly advanced on the young man, fists clenched at her side. Oh yes… She was quite angry with Harry, and it was easily seen, from her tense demeanor and rage-filled eyes.

Harry cowered against the wall, and began to beg for mercy, "Please don't hit me, Hermione! It was a joke! A joke, you know? I-I didn't mean anything bad by it." There was obvious panic in Harry's voice, as he was becoming quite hysterical. Backed against a wall, Hermione stared daggers at her friend for, and advanced menacingly.

"Fine." Again, there was a strange quality in the way she said it. There was no more anger in her words… only an indescribable gloom. Hermione's eyes drooped with sadness, and her shoulders sagged, as she simply walked away, heading back towards Hogwarts Castle. She hadn't done any physical damage to the young man, leaving him in perfect health.

"Hermione, w-wait up!"

She didn't.

_- End Flashback –_

'Perhaps I shouldn't have been so harsh on him,' Hermione mused, as she made her way to the bathroom. Once there, she quickly reached for her toothbrush, and began her nightly ritual. 'I have every right to be angry, but is there _really _any logical reason to put Harry through this over something so trivial?'

She began to brush, exactly as her parents had taught her, with perfect form, and tight up-and-down strokes, over each sector of her mouth. 'At least Ron and Harry have managed to make up… Perhaps this _has _actually brought about something positive, even if only a bit.'

The daughter of dentists completed the process by washing her mouth out, and carefully inspecting her teeth, to ensure that they were flawless. As to be expected, they were. She returned to her room, and quickly disrobed, changing into more comfortable clothes to lounge in. Hoping to avoid Harry Potter, the girl simply reclined upon her bed, and stared up at the ceiling. For once, it felt good to be doing absolutely nothing at all, a feeling quite amplified by the fact that it was so pleasantly quiet.

A sound drifted up into the Girl's Dormitories. It was the voice of none other than, Harry Potter, the man himself. "Hermione? Are you up there?"

Scratch that.

"No," she replied flatly, frowning up at the ceiling, as she fiddled with a curly lock of light brown hair. Unfortunately for her, Harry was quickly catching on to Hermione's plans to dodge him. It was as though she had a tracking device on her, or something similar.

Harry's voice drifted up the stairs, "Yes, you are! I heard your voice!"

Silently glowering, she retorted, "Leave me alone, Harry. Can't you take the hint? I'm not pleased with you, at the moment."

"But… but you haven't given me a chance to make it up to you!" Harry's voice was bordering on a whine. "That's not _fair!_"

"Perhaps you should learn to _think_ before you do something so irresponsible and childish, next time!" Hermione replied heatedly, folding her arms in a huff.

"She's right, you know, mate?" This time it was Ron's voice. She could almost sense Harry casting a wicked glare at the young man, despite not being able to see either of them. "What?!" Ron cried, obviously directed at Harry, "I'm speaking from experience here."

"You're _not _helping, Ron." Harry grumbled, before calling back up the stairs, "Her_moine!_" There was definitely a whine in his voice this time. "Will you _please _come down and talk to me? What will it take for you to forgive me? I already told you…" His voice darkened, and he seemed to choke over his words, "I-I regret what I did…"

"Still angry, here," Hermione replied smartly. "Apologies will only get you so far in life, Harry. It's better to not make the mistake in the first place."

She couldn't make out what Harry said, but, using her deductive powers, Hermione could tell that he was cursing. "I'm going to come up there, alright Hermione? I'm getting tired of yelling up a staircase." She could hear Harry jogging up the steps.

Ron's voice called out to his friend, "Harry, the stairs are rigge-"

Scoffing, Hermione muttered, "It figures that git would forget. You can't just barge into a girl's room." After hearing a loud, painful sounding thump, and a vehement bout of swearing, Hermione felt her lips curl up into a smile, and she was obligated to laugh at the situation she was unable to see.

"Told you it wouldn't work, Harry."

"Shut _up_, Ron!" Harry's muffled voice became clearer, and he apparently had continued to call up the staircase. "I'm going to bed now. I _wish _I could've talked to you at least face to face, Hermione… Well… Goodnight." Harry sounded quite distraught, and Hermione could hear him stomp away.

Glancing at her watch, she noted that it was only about nine o'clock. Estimating how long it would take for Harry to fall asleep, and giving herself a safety buffer, she resolved that it wouldn't be safe to return to the Common Room until about ten thirty or so.

Arguing with Harry always felt so draining. It was as though their arguments were a physically and mentally exhausting exercise. 'It's quite irrational, really… I'm not angry with Harry much. I _know _he's trying, _really _trying to apologize but… I just can't bring myself to accept his apology just yet.'

Hermione pulled her knees to her chest, as she sat on her bed, staring intently at nothing in particular. "I'm a horrible person."

-

Hearing a creak, and the sound of feet plodding heavily down the stairs of the Boy's Dormitories, Hermione glanced up from the fire, and cast a look in the direction of the noise, only to be greeted by a thin boy coming down the stairs, looking as though he had borne some unknown, unspeakable terrors through the night.

"Harry? I thought you went to bed _hours _ago!" Hermione glared at the young man as he quietly, dejectedly made his way towards her. "In case you haven't forgotten, I'm still quite angry with you, no matter _how _late it is."

He brought his face up, and stared into her eyes, the sea-green eyes of his twisting with turmoil, as though a violent storm raged within them. "H-Hermione…" His voice was a chaotic blend of emotions. Sadness, confusion, need, fear all vying for their place. He gingerly rubbed at his scar, traces of pain left on his face. "I don't understand anything… _He_'s…" The boy trailed off, and stared back at the floor.

This was bigger than a petty spat between friends. There was no way that something so trivial could get between Harry and Hermione at a time like this. He was at his weakest, most vulnerable in this state. It was an unspoken thing between the two of them. Hermione could offer just what Harry needed.

Comfort.

Facing Harry, Hermione approached him, hugging her friend tenderly, in an attempt to show him support. She could feel his arms wrapping around her slowly, and felt his warm breath on her neck. Whispering up to him, Hermione simply said, "Come with me." She took his hand, and calmly sat with him on the couch, cradling him close. "Shh… You'll be fine, Harry. Everything's alright… You're safe here."

* * *

**Author's Notes**: I was dead tired when I began this chapter, and certainly quite exhausted when I finished. I'm sorry if that affected my already meager skills in any way, shape or form. Anyway! If you have some extra time lying about, please leave me a review. I'd certainly enjoy hearing from you, whether you're registered or not. I always like to hear what others have to say. Well, now I've got to say goodnight. 


	19. Ominous Warnings

**Foreword**: Well, we're almost twenty chapters in. That's a bit of a milestone for me. Not too shabby for a first story, right? Especially when I originally meant for it to be around one or two chapters instead! I'd like to thank everybody who reviewed. You guys are keeping me fueled to write this story, and I'm trying my best!

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything that J.K. Rowling does, nor do I ever expect to. The only thing I can do to voice my dissatisfaction with the ending of Harry Potter is employ my pathetic writing "skills" to alter the story, and bypass plenty of things that I wasn't happy with. That being said, any similarities between anything in this story and anything real are pretty much coincidental, and not meant to hurt any feelings. Now, assuming that J.K. Rowling doesn't hunt me down, and rip out my throat, or preform some sort of sadistic, cult ritual on me, that involves dismemberment, I'll be able to continue writing for a bit longer! On with Chapter 19!

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**Ominous Warnings**

It had taken quite some time to calm Harry down, and the clock had moved its hands past one o'clock. Subdued, Harry rested his head on Hermione's shoulder, as though he was a stone statue incapable of moving.

"Harry," she said, giving the boy a tiny nudge. After eliciting no response, Hermione shoved him a bit harder. "Harry!"

He seemed to snap out of a trance, and glanced over to his fellow Gryffindor, pulling away slightly, so that he could comfortably stare her in the eye. The black haired youth slowly said, "Yeah? What do you need?"

"You should see Professor Dumbledore, immediately, Harry." Hermione's voice was grave, impressing the importance of the matter. After all, the wizened wizard had explicitly told Harry to come to him, if his dreams cropped up again.

Harry, however, simply placed his head back on Hermione's shoulder, and clasped her hand between both of his. "Isn't… Isn't it too late? Students aren't allowed out this late."

"Since when has _that _ever stopped you?" Hermione chuckled, feeling him gently holding onto her hand. "You've got to see him _now_, Harry… I think Professor Dumbledore would understand losing a bit of sleep, over something so important."

"_I _don't have to do anything, Hermione…" The Boy-Who-Lived solemnly looked at his friend, before cracking as bright a smile as he could muster. "_We _have to see Dumbledore, right now, though."

"I'm still unhappy with you, remember?" Hermione attempted to scowl, but she simply found that she couldn't. Instead, she returned the smile, and she felt Harry gently squeeze her hand.

"Unhappy is a step down from furious." His sea-green eyes locked with Hermione's deep brown irises, and he genuinely said, "I'll make it up to you, Hermione… somehow, I will. Even at a time like this, you're there for me."

"It's what I do, Harry. As a friend, it's my responsibility, and my pleasure to help you out, when you need it." Looking thoughtful for a moment, Hermione bit her lower lip, and twisted a lock of curly hair around her finger nervously. "Perhaps I have been overreacting a bit… But if you feel the need to make it up to me, then I certainly won't begrudge you that."

"Well… Shall we?" Harry got up off of his favorite piece of furniture, and held a hand out to Hermione, with a small smile gracing his face. He was simply trying to make the best of his current time, as when he was forced to relive his nightmare, there would _be _no smiles, or laughter. With such a grim thing on the horizon, Harry tried his best to make light of it, for his own sanity.

Clasping his hand for support as she got up, Hermione joined Harry, and the two walked side by side, towards the portrait of the Fat Lady. After rousing a grouchy portrait, the pair was on their way towards Dumbledore's office, stealthily sneaking through the shadowy corridors.

A few close calls with Mrs. Norris later, Harry and Hermione approached the entrance to the Headmaster's office, and Harry softly spoke the password, "Peanut Butter Toffee." As they stood, exposed in the hallways, Harry felt dread like a punch in the gut, as the vivid dream began to resurface in his mind. Unconsciously, he felt his hand reach out in the dark, and take Hermione's, finding solace in the warmth of human interaction.

"Harry, what are you…?" Feeling the tremble of his hand, Hermione nodded slightly and squeezed his hand, silently reassuring him of her presence.

After the passageway was opened, Harry and Hermione began their ascent into the Headmaster's Office, by way of spiral staircase. A faint humming noise echoed in the stone stairwell, and it steadily grew louder with each step up, until finally, a heated voice could be easily discerned.

"I'm _telling _you, Albus! Listen to me for once. I _know _what I'm talking about. There is _something _wrong with him! All his strange behavior and ingredients missing from my storage closet does not bear good news."

The voice was quite familiar, though neither Harry nor Hermione had ever heard it as anything but calm and collected. It was a voice belonging to none other than Severus Snape, the Potions Master of Hogwarts.

"Severus, Severus… Harry would be most displeased to hear such comments… I know what you are getting at, and rest assured, I am always alert. Alastor is- Ah!" Dumbledore's voice stopped, and he genially said, "I do believe we have visitors. Two, if I'm not mistaken, in my old age."

Harry and Hermione sheepishly stumbled into his office, muttering apologies as quickly as they could.

Snape, as always, glared at the two, and said, "You two are out _far _after the curfew was effective." There seemed to be an edge of joy in his voice. After all, there was absolutely _no _way that they could slip through his grasp _this _time.

"Perhaps I should handle this one, Severus… After all, why would somebody committing such a blatant infraction come directly to the Headmaster's Office?" Dumbledore's ice blue eyes twinkled behind his silver half-moon glasses, and he folded his hands on his cluttered desk.

Very displeased, from the look on his face, Snape stalked towards the stairs. "Mark my words, Albus. Something is _not _right with him." Snape's black cloaks flowed as he stalked away and he dryly said, "After all… We must show constant vigilance."

Dumbledore waved him off, and turned his attention to the students in his office, smiling warmly, "My, my… What can I do for you fine young scholars at such a late hour?"

"I'm not acting strangely!" Harry said, indignantly, as he remembered Snape's cryptic words. Though there had been no clear distinction, Harry got the impression that the Potions Master was talking about him, since belittling James Potter's son had become something of a sport to him. "Professor, I'm honestly not sure what Snape means bu-"

"_Professor_ Snape, Harry." Hermione and Dumbledore blinked and stared at one another, before chuckling a bit, as they had both said the exact same thing at the exact same moment.

The whitened wizard smiled affably and began to root through his candy jar. "Harry, it's best if you didn't concern yourself with what Severus and I were talking about. Rest assured that the issue has nothing to do with you, my boy. Professor Snape is just a very cautious person… Perhaps more so than even I, at times."

He held out a lemon drop towards Hermione, who refused it. "Not this time, Professor… It's a bit too late to be eating candy. I've already brushed my teeth, and something so sweet would increase my chances for cavities."

"Ah yes! How could I forget? Your parents are dentists, Miss Granger…" The old man trailed off, and refocused his attention on Harry. "Ah yes… Back to the matter at hand. Exactly why, may I ask, are the both of you here?"

Harry grimaced. This was the part that he hated the _most_. Harry breathed deeply, trying to calm his breathing down. In a few moments, he would be reliving his nightmare. "Professor… I… You told me to come to you immediately if I ever… you know, had one of those _dreams _again…"

"Have you had another one, Harry?" Dumbledore's face darkened a bit, though he tried to sound as cheerful as before. There was distinctly worried tone in his voice, and the old wizard leaned in towards the two more closely.

"Yes." Harry kept it quite brief.

"Tell me, Harry… Was it the same as before?"

"Not quite, Professor," Harry confessed, as his entire body shuddered involuntarily. "I remember… a giant snake. It was slithering across the floor, before wrapping itself around my legs, and inching its way to my shoulders." He faltered and closed his eyes for a moment, trying to regain composure.

Hermione quickly placed her hands over Harry's, and gently rubbed it. "It's alright, Harry… There's nothing to be afraid of… We're with _Dumbledore_…" Realizing what she had just said, Hermione quickly amended her statement, "Er- Professor Dumbledore."

Again, the Headmaster did nothing but wave off the comment, and stare intently at Harry, his knuckles white from the tight manner in which he held his hands together.

"I… I heard _His _voice… Voldemort just… He laughed, and hissed the word 'Nagini' to that _creature_ around me!"

Even such a powerful wizard as Dumbledore was beginning to become anxious, as talk of the Dark Lord began to crop up. "Did you see what Voldemort, or Tom rather looked like? Was he strong?"

"When… when he was speaking…" Harry shook his head and gripped Hermione tightly. "I felt my throat rumble… rumble like _I _was talking… only I wasn't."

Alarmed, though it was undetected by either of the students, Dumbledore blinked, and his previous demeanor returned. "You've done a good thing, in coming here tonight, Harry. This is most troubling… I cannot, in good conscious, say otherwise. However, I _do _advise that you do your best to forget about the occurrence… Such a troubling thing should not be weighing down your mind."

Hermione tugged at his arm slightly, as if saying, "I told you so."

-

Back in the safety of the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry stared intently into the writhing flames in the hearth, noting how the tongues of fire twisted and slithered, like fiery snakes. As though it was as natural as breathing, Harry frowned, deeply disturbed at his thought process. He silently seethed at himself, for allowing something so simple to bother him, simply because he had been over analytical.

Hermione folded her arms across her chest, and sternly said, "Stop that, Harry."

"Huh?" Harry's eyes focused on Hermione as he turned his head, though the frown was still in place, the sole constant of his face for what seemed like an eternity.

"You said you were going to make up for your behavior, didn't you?" Hermione said, staring pointedly with her brown eyes. "You promised me, Harry."

Unenthusiastically, Harry replied with a deadened and drained voice, devoid of emotion. It was a pathetic sound, barely worthy of being the voice of a proud Gryffindor, especially one such as the famous Harry Potter. "I guess so… What do you need?"

"Just… Just smile for me more, Harry." Blushing, the girl averted her eyes to the floor, and softly said, "I don't like it when you frown… You've got too much on your shoulders as it is."

"Are you serious?" he asked, incredulously, unsure what to make of her response. "I-I smile! Just…" He quickly let a falsely bright smile come to his face, and said, "No problems! I smile more than you'd think, Hermione!"

She rolled her eyes, and shoved him a bit, "That's worse than frowning, Harry. _That _is not a smile… It should be genuine… _pure_." Her brown curls shook as she gently nodded, remembering fondly the few times that she was lucky enough to witness a _real _smile coming from her friend. Again, she nodded in affirmation, "_That _is the kind of smile that I want to see on you, Harry. No more of this depressing business, okay?"

"You make me sound like Moaning Myrtle!" Harry groaned, half amused, half upset that Hermione was making him seem so wimpy and wretched.

"Not quite… No, you're not as voyeuristic as she is." Hermione chuckled, and said, "After all, you can let somebody use the loo in privacy, without trying to come into the stall."

Moaning Myrtle had, on occasion- That's a lie. Moaning Myrtle made it her _job _to funnel up through the pipes whenever Harry had to use the public toilets. It was for that precise reason that he avoided them like the plague. Remembering that he had tricked Moaning Myrtle to go into a stall that Harry just _happened _to recommend to Hagrid, the young man felt his lips curl up into the faintest wisp of a smile, and chuckled almost silently as he recalled the shock that both of them were caught by.

As Harry was caught up Memory Lane, Hermione gazed tenderly into his eyes, satisfied that Harry wasn't frowning. "That wasn't so hard, was it?" she murmured, taking a step forward. Hermione stood on her tip toes, and pecked Harry on the cheek. "Goodnight, Harry."

**

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**: Ah yes, I've finished Chapter 19. I'm not too sure what to say about this one, however. Have no worry, the story will begin to progress again soon. You shouldn't have to suffer through twenty more pages of annoying drivel before reaching the next task. I'm sure you're all jumping for joy at that prospect, haha. Anyway, If you happen to have some time, please leave me a review! I'd appreciate some input on what I'm doing right, but more importantly, what's wrong. How miserably did I fail this time? Hopefully not _too _badly! crosses fingers 


	20. Spring Up Snare

**Foreword**: Ah! You made it! I'm ever so glad that you've managed to persevere through nineteen chapters of utter garbage, and have no made it to chapter twenty. In case you couldn't tell, I'm not a fan of my own writing really… I get quite sick of it sometimes. It's nice that at least _some _people enjoy it though, haha. Myself not included.

**Disclaimer**: Yes, by the time you read this, I'll have acquired the rights to Harry Potter through some methods, both legal and illegal. Basically, if you couldn't tell I was joking, just smile and nod… that tends to work out in life. But really, I'm like, sixteen. I don't own jack at this point. Oh wait… I _do _happen to own this story, but that doesn't quite count, since I'm bastardizing a story of J.K. Rowling's and morphing it into my own, so I can do whatever pleases me. Like what was happening from book one, to book five. Then Ginny suddenly appeared in book six. Such a shame… Anyway, enough of my blathering.

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**Spring Up Snare**

Harry let out a massive sigh of relief, as he scanned the letter Hedwig had dropped into his hands.

_Hey kid, I have to keep this short. I really think you'd enjoy the mountains around here. There's lots of room for hiking, though you have to be careful not to get lost. You're not likely to run into another person for days. Snuffles._

"He's safe…" Harry grinned and tucked the letter into his pocket, vowing to burn it later, as he had promised Sirius that he would burn all communication that they shared after reading it. For a time, Harry had been quite on edge. Somehow, Rita Skeeter had managed to find a connection between the eldest surviving Black, and The Boy-Who-Lived. As always, she filled in any plot holes with copious amounts of innuendo, and sexual escapades of him and Hermione. None of it was true, of course, but it sure did a great job convincing the mindless masses.

If it hadn't been for Neville and Cedric, Harry's _real _reputation would be as valued as the combined intelligence of Crabbe and Goyle, which just happened to be an incredibly small number. With a tiny bit of convincing, Harry had managed to get at _least _Gryffindor supporting him for who he was.

Poking at his food with a half-smile, Harry could feel two holes beginning to drill into his skull. He glanced up, looking across the table, to see Hermione beaming at him intently.

Harry raised an eyebrow, and cautiously said, "What? What's got you so giddy?"

Hermione waved it off, and returned to her breakfast.

'Odd… What's with all the strange looks she keeps tossing my direction? Hermione's a bit mental, I guess…' Harry chuckled to himself, and unwittingly said, "But then again, to be friends with me, you _have _to be!"

Hermione raised an eyebrow at her friend, and said, "Try complete thoughts, next time. They work wonders, Harry." Her quiet voice carried easily, over the wind, and the subdued buzz of conversation at the other tables in the Great Hall.

"Where did Ron get off to? I woke him up, after all… He even got out of bed!" Harry glanced around, noticing that, in his haste to consume as much food as humanly possible, for sustenance, he had forgotten to keep track of his partner-in-crime, Ron Weasly.

"Honestly, can't you remember _anything_? I'm starting to worry about you." Hermione rolled her eyes, with a melodious laugh. "Ron told you to sod off, and got _back _into bed, when he realized it was still technically morning."

"What a lump…" he muttered, spearing a sausage with his fork. He took a bite and chewed, making sure, unlike Ron, to swallow before speaking again. "Can't believe he'd ditch us for a _pillow_."

A matter-of-factly tone edged her voice, as the girl folded her arms across her chest, "In case you've forgotten, _you _almost ditched the entire female populace for a _couch_."

"Details, details, Hermione… Besides! I had a good reason!" Harry began to list off reasons, and he counted on his fingers. "I didn't want to be embarrassed. I can't dance. I hate being in large crowds of people. My "date" would treat me like arm candy. Rita Skeeter would probably have found another way to publicly blast me in the Prophet. By the way, did I mention I can't dance?" He looked up from his hands, and simply said, "Reason enough?"

Scoffing, the intelligent Gryffindor girl said, "You have _got _to sort out your priorities, Harry James Potter." She wagged a finger at him, as though she was dealing with a petulant six year-old child.

"I _have _got my priorities straight…" Harry rummaged through his pockets, and quickly scratched a few words onto a piece of scrap paper. "I even have a list!" He held out his hand, and slid the paper across the table towards the girl, his face brightened by the laughter he held in.

Expectantly, the girl inspected the list. As she read the points, she frowned. "Number one; Survive, Number two; Graduate, Number three; Burn Hermione's school books, and force her to go outside once and a while?! Harry, that's _not_ funny." Hermione glared at him, as her voice quickly took on every element of seriousness.

"I thought the part about burning books was rather slick," Harry chuckled as he crumpled the parchment into a ball, and set it aside.

Hermione pointedly said, "You _know _what I mean, Harry." She was looking quite bothered that Harry would joke about such a serious matter. She had been pushing Harry for weeks to lighten up about certain subjects, but Harry had made a radical change, by about-facing his disposition. As a matter of fact, he hadn't been truly glum in days! Quite a record, by Harry's standards.

Nonchalant about the topic, Harry shrugged. "You really should, you know…"

Hermione, taken aback, could not follow his thought process. Instead she was reduced to simply saying, "Should what?"

"Come outside with me!" Harry motioned to the windows of the Great Hall, which were flung wide open, with the coming spring. "It's a glorious day outside, and I should like to think that we'd done our best to get our money's worth."

Raising an eyebrow, Hermione focused on the young man, her cleared plate set aside and forgotten. "Harry, we haven't _paid_ for anything."

"It was just an expression, Hermione!" The Gryffindor Champion scowled playfully and said, "_You knew_ what I meant."

"Well, it's not a very _good_ one, is it?" By this point, Hermione couldn't resist a smile coming to her own face. Turning her head, she glanced at the open window, feeling a warm breeze lace its way through her hair. "Perhaps a bit of fresh air _would _be good. It _is _a Saturday, so it's not like we need to be bothering with school at the moment."

Harry convulsed and gripped at his heart tightly with both hands. For a second, worry flashed over Hermione's face, before she noticed the impish grin on the boy's face. It must have been a trait inherited from his father, no doubt. "My God! Did _Hermione Granger _just suggest taking time _off _from _school_?!"

"Oh, quiet, you!"

-

From the corner of her eye, Hermione noticed movement, and stealthily shot a look in the direction of the action. 'I must be awfully tired still… I could've sworn that I saw something.'

Harry sipped at the Pumpkin Juice that he had left in his goblet. Reasoning that it would be a waste of perfectly good drink, the young man simply opted to carry the vessel with him as the two strolled around the campus of Hogwarts. "I don't think I ever properly thanked you, Hermione…"

"Thanked me? What have _I _done?" Hermione raised an eyebrow. She couldn't think of anything out of the ordinary that she had done for Harry, and simply shrugged.

"You know, when I had the dream, and you were still mad at me after… yeah." They had agreed to permanently strike the fire drop incident from the "official" records.

Without knowing, the pair unintentionally headed towards Hagrid's Hut, traveling the well-worn path on instinct, rather than consciousness. "That's what I'm for, Harry." Hermione felt a blush come to her cheeks as she remembered that night, and the goodnight kiss she had given him. The girl simply did not want to make a big deal out of it, mainly to hide her embarrassment.

"Well…" Harry knew. He could just tell. The black haired boy knew that Hermione was uncomfortable, and didn't want to talk about that night, so he ended the conversation promptly. "Er… regardless of what happened, thanks, Hermione."

"Don't worry abo-" Again, from the corner of her eye, she caught sight of movement, and this time, heard the buzzing of thin, film like wings flapping feverishly in the wind. Wings like that of a beetle.

"What's wrong? You seem sorta distracted…" Harry finished off his drink, and sat down at a wooden bench near Hagrid's Hut, which he assumed was Hagrid's picnic and assorted dangerous animals table. A bug flapped around his face, and Harry waved a hand towards it, ushering it away from him.

Hermione, however, instantly locked onto the insect, making sure to keep a close eye on it. She had been nursing suspicions for quite some time, and now, it was the time to act upon her hunch.

Laughing, Harry watched as Hermione ignored him. "I never thought I'd see the day when _Hermione Granger _spaced out…" He was at _least _hoping that she would crack a smile, however, he knew that look on her face _far _too well. It was the look of pure, unadulterated determination. _Whatever _she was up to, _nothing _would stop the bookish girl.

"Harry, may I see your goblet?" Hermione asked, keeping her eye on the beetle that buzzed around the pair.

Not even responding, Harry did nothing but shrug his shoulders, and drop the now empty container into her open palm.

Faster than greased lightning, Hermione slammed the cup upside-down onto the wooden bench with a curt snap, ringing out in the Spring air.

"What was _that _all about?" Harry asked skeptically, slipping a hand into the pockets of his jeans. With his other hand, he fidgeted with his belt buckle, for a fleeting moment, before also shoving that hand into his pockets.

Hermione smiled sweetly, and innocently said, "I seem to have caught quite a pesky insect that's been plaguing us for _far _too long."

**

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**: As usual, I'd like to thank you for reading the chapter. It makes a guy feel proud that I can manage to attract such a following of people to read my story. Really brings a proverbial tear to the eye. Anyway, if you have enough time to spare, please drop me a review. It's a great thing to post before I go to bed, then wake up to an inbox of reviews. So, if you're up to it, go ahead. Also, in the near future, I'll be introducing a special character. No, not an original one either. This character is a bona fide genius. I wonder if anybody'll see it coming. 


	21. An Ounce of Intimidation

**Foreword**: I'm a complete jerk. That's what I am. I've made you all wait for FAR too long. I really didn't intend for that to happen, but it did… I would've uploaded this chapter last night, but I was worn out. I had to watch a bunch of my little cousins. Now, to any of you who babysit, or have kids of your own, I admire what you do. Seriously. You must have incredible will, or a big reserve of energy. I was pooped after a few hours! Well, I'm quite happy that so many of you reviewed the last chapter. Ah yes though… With the chapters increasing in number, I'm beginning to feel sort of pretentious, you catch my meaning? I don't know… But then again, I'm always the harshest critic I've ever encountered, so that may be a factor. Anyway, this picks up right where the last one left off… er… _almost _where it left off.

**Disclaimer**: Ah yes… Well, funny story. I was setting about to acquire the rights to Harry Potter, but I only managed to get a door slammed in my face. Talk about rude! But I must persevere! Anyway, enough with the dramatic crap… You'll get enough in the story. I don't own anything unoriginal. Anything else, you can guess that I _do _own.

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**An Ounce of Intimidation**

Hermione smiled viciously, as she stared at the glass jar she had transported the beetle to. "Why hello there! Having quite a nice day, are we?" For added effect, the normally sensitive girl shook the jar with a malicious gleam in her infuriated, brown eyes.

"Um… Hermione…" Harry scratched at his scalp nervously, and slowly said, "Uh… I don't mean to be rude, but… You're talking to a bug." The young man stepped closer to Hermione, and placed one hand around her wrist, with the other hand traveling to her forehead. "You're not running a fever, are you?"

Hermione jerked away from him, and tersely said, "Harry. Off. Now." She sneered at the jar, and said, "I am _not _sick in the _least_."

The young man instantly let go and backed up, flinging his hands into the air, as a sign that he meant no harm. "Perhaps we should let the beetle go… I thought you were firmly against animal cruelty, Hermione." Harry slowly reached for the jar, attempting to take it from her.

The girl ripped it away from his grasp, her curly hair fluttering in the blustery wind. "How can you say something like that?!" She fumed, as she jammed an accusatory finger into Harry Potter's sternum with more than a little force, "Do you know what this _is?!_"

Wincing at the assault on his sternum, he replied, "Uhh… Yeah." Harry glanced around a bit, nervous at the intense death-glare she was giving him. "I-It's just a beetle, Hermione… nothing uncommon about that." He scooted closer ever so slightly and put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you _sure_ you're feeling up to par?"

"_This_," Hermione said, shaking the jar once more, "is _Rita Skeeter!_"

"Okay, that's it." Harry physically wrapped his arms around Hermione, and lifted her off the ground. "I'm _convinced _that you're sick. Hermione… That's just a _bug_. We're going to the Hospital Ward. I… I want to make sure that you're alright." His voice quite painfully betrayed his emotions. Harry was worried. Seriously worried.

Flailing about, Hermione huffed, "Harry James Potter, put me down this instant!" She felt her heel connect with something solid, and felt her feet planting on the ground seconds later, accompanied by a groaning from behind her.

On the ground, clutching at his shin, Harry Potter rolled on the damp grass, trying his best to muffle his own pathetic cries of pain. "Y-You kicked me! Argh… I didn't know you could kick _that _hard, Hermione! Geez, what do you do all day? Kick iron footballs?"

"Hardly," Hermione retorted snappishly. "I _told _you that I'm not sick, and I'm _not!_" The girl grinned evilly at the frightened beetle inside the jar, and said, "I do admit, however, that in my excitement, I forgot to tell you exactly what I meant."

Still in pain, Harry frowned, "That's going to leave quite the bruise, I'll have you know!"

"Oh, stop being such a baby!" Hermione cried, throwing her free arm up in frustration. "If you didn't want to be kicked, you should've thought of the consequences before you picked me up, Harry… I'm terribly sorry that I _did _kick you, but it was a reflex." She knelt down next to him, and placed a hand on his shoulder, gently rubbing it.

The young man deeply breathed in, filling his lungs with fresh air. There was a certain crispness to it, and he detected the slight fragrance of daisies. He would know, after all. Dealing with all of Aunt Petunia's flowers for years had given him a bit of knowledge about flowers. He sniffed once more, and opened his eyes. It was coming from… To pinpoint the location, Harry breathed in a final time, before setting his eyes on Hermione. For some reason, it was coming from her.

"What?" she said, perplexed at the stare he was giving her. Though his smile was only half of one, the bliss on Harry's face more than made up for it. It, as always, sent a warm feeling, like a cozy sweater on a cool day, through her body, when she saw him smile. For a moment, she also began to smile.

Then she remembered the jar in her hand.

And Rita Skeeter.

"There's no time for this silliness, Harry!" Hermione jumped to her feet, and glared at the jar. "This beetle is Rita Skeeter. She's an Animagus! I have no doubt about it, Harry. None at all."

Harry's sea-green eyes instantly hardened, and he fixed a stare on the jar. "I see…" He moved closer, and looked intensely at the insect. "I think she needs to learn some manners, Hermione. What do you think?"

An idea came to her. She had to make _sure _that this bug _was _Rita Skeeter. Otherwise, they would be simply torturing a helpless insect. "If you _are _Rita Skeeter, fly to the top of the jar twice." Hermione watched carefully, noting that the bug did absolutely nothing.

Harry raised an eyebrow, and shrugged. "I… guess it's _not _Rita," he said, semi-disappointed.

"Nonsense, Harry. She'd fake it, to try and fool us." Hermione waved him off and the pair began to head towards Hogwarts. "Oh, Harry, Defense Against The Dark Arts is such a bothersome subject for me… I just _can't _for the _life _of me, seem to grasp the concepts behind the Unforgivable Curses!" There was a strange element to Hermione's voice, almost as though she was blatantly acting, to add a vicious effect to her actions.

Harry, being a typical male, didn't pick up on this. "What are you talking about, Hermione?! You do brilliantly in that class. And I know for a _fact _that you know all about the Unforgivable Curses…"

"Silly me, I must have forgotten them in all my _amorous encounters _with you, Harry." Hermione shrugged, attempting to hide the devious smile coming to her lips. "Perhaps we should just have Professor Moody re-demonstrate each use of the spells. This time, he wouldn't _need _a spider. After all, we have a perfectly good beetle right here."

Feeling motion in the jar, two light thuds rang out quietly. Hermione pretended not to notice, though Harry did. "Hm? What was that, Harry? It couldn't have been movement… After all, it's just a simple bug, right?"

Frantically, the tiny beetle began to smash itself into the top of the jar as quickly as it could, apparently understanding that Alastor Moody _could _and _would _use the Unforgiveable Curses on it.

"You were right, Hermione… it _is _Rita Skeeter!" Harry swore under his breath, "She came after me. She came after _you_… She even came after _Sirius!_ _That _is inexcusable."

"Perhaps she would like to _meet _him." Hermione couldn't suppress the evil laughter that had risen to her throat. It was _not _musical in the least. It was downright scary. Hermione was a very extreme person. Sometimes, she seemed to radiate confidence and kindness, wearing the sun in her hair, while other times, she seemed to make even Voldemort seem like nothing more than a petulant child.

Harry nodded with a grim smile in place. "I'm sure Rita wouldn't mind missing a wing or two…"

The beetle was now shaking visibly, obviously from fear of her helplessness. She was facing death. Rita Skeeter was never one to believe in such abstract and ridiculous notions such as the notion of Karma, but at the moment, the idea of it was starting to seem pretty realistic.

"Listen up, Rita." Hermione brought the jar up to both hers and Harry's faces, and stared at the beetle right in its beady little eyes. "Obviously, we _could _report to the Ministry of Magic that you're an unregistered Animagus, as I'm _sure _that something like this in _your _profession is quite illegal. But then again, who would think twice about a squashed bug? If you mysteriously went missing, and the only evidence was a smashed insect, I'm sure no one would make the connection… Now, you had best listen as carefully as you can. Leave us alone. Leave Harry and me out of your articles. In fact, _stop _libeling people through your pathetic excuse for writing… or else we'll make _sure _that you do." To add emphasis, Hermione gravely said, "Permanently."

The Boy-Who-Lived had never been comfortable lying, and it was just the same in this case, though he understood the importance of it. This was for a cause greater than himself… He was doing it to keep his friends' reputations as untarnished as could be managed. "Sirius _is _a murderer, after all… What's one more notch to his wand?"

"Precisely. Do you understand? Fly up twice if you do." Hermione watched expectantly as the beetle shakily fluttered up towards the lid of the jar twice, before settling back on the bottom.

The bookworm drew her wand, and pointed it at Rita Skeeter, the beetle, and clearly said, "Implacabilis Venatio." A celestial-looking arrow of silvery sparks passed through the glass, and through the beetle.

"That was just a bit of insurance… With that spell, I can track your location. No matter _where _you are, we can find you." Tucking a few loose strands of curly hair behind her ear, Hermione replaced her wand into her pocket, and slowly loosened the top of the jar. "Now, if I let you free, I don't expect to read another article of yours spewing lies."

"_I _expect you to write a thorough apology, to everyone who you've dragged through the mud,_ especially Hermione_," Harry folded his arms and calmly said, as his closest friend was unscrewing the cap.

As soon as she was free, Rita Skeeter, in insect form, bolted away as fast as her tiny beetle wings could carry her.

The pair entered through the great oaken doors of Hogwarts, and silently walked through a stone corridor together. After such a debacle, neither were quite up to talking yet… at least not for a few more steps.

"Hermione… That spell you cast… I can't believe you'd know something like that! It's brilliant, but…" Harry trailed off for a moment, as he fiddled with the hem of his shirt for a moment, before nervously continuing. "You'd think something of that caliber would be illegal."

Thankfully, for Harry, Hermione's laughter shifted back to its merry self, as she released a pleasantly musical bout of laughter, her chest heaving heartily. "Oh Harry, you're too much sometimes… That wasn't a _real _spell. It was all for show." Again, she was interrupted by her own chuckling. "You _really_ thought it was real? I must have overdone it…" Clearing her throat, the curly-haired girl calmed down, "But honestly… I doubt that I could cast such a spell, if one even _existed_… Only extremely powerful wizards, like Dumbledore, could do something like that."

"I- but… What…? The arrow! Sparks passed through…" Unable to vocalize his thoughts correctly, Harry simply settled for the ever-graceful, "Huh?!"

"Those were nothing more than Ghostly Glimmers, Harry… It's quite a useful spell, despite its simplicity…" The pair was now rounding the corner, and moving towards the staircase. They heard a shuffle of feet, and saw an extremely tired Weasley making his way down the stone stairs of Hogwarts, no doubt on his way to devour as much food as he could.

"Ugh, bugger of a morning, eh?" Ron stifled a yawn and blinked tiredly. "Did I miss anythin' excitin' while I was asleep?

"No, Ronald… It's been quite a boring day."

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**Author's Notes**: So there you have it. Rita Skeeter will NOT be having a pleasant time, I can assure you… Anyway, if you have a bit of free time, please leave me a review. I would enjoy it very much. I like to get feedback, because it lets me know what I need to keep doing, and what I need to change! Having said that, I bid you goodnight. I hope to update later today, however… If time permits, that is.

By the way, the "spell" that Hermione uses is simply Latin for "Unrelenting Hunt".


	22. This Chapter Has No Witty Relevant Name

**Foreword**: Now, before I get all wordy and take up space, I'd like to thank everybody who reviewed. Heck, I'd like to thank everybody who even _read_ the last chapter. Yes, the story will be going on now… And it's time to introduce that special character I've mentioned, haha. I'm not sure if anybody will care or not, but he was mentioned in the first chapter, if you remember.

**Disclaimer**: I've resigned myself to the fact that I won't own Harry Potter any time soon… but that doesn't mean I'll quit trying, haha. It's the least I can do to try and erase that abomination (AKA The Epilogue) from history. Anyway, I don't own the special character either… That'd be weird, haha.

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**This Chapter Has No Witty/Relevant Name**

Ron Weasley lounged in a thickly padded chair, with his untouched homework resting in his lap, as he spoke with Harry, who was sprawled greedily across his favorite couch. "You hear the news? Some big-shot's comin' to Hogwarts for a little while… for… Well, _you_ know."

"Yeah… I know… It's coming up soon, Ron." Harry stared intently at the ceiling, as his sea-green eyes darkened, like the sky before a storm. "I can't wait to get this bloody tournament behind me."

Shifting in his chair, the young redhead slowly said, "Hey Harry… You know… You're barely behind Cedric, for first… You actually have a shot at _winning_, mate."

Harry shrugged, and flatly said, "If it came down to that, I'd let Cedric win." He didn't want to talk about the final task, but apparently, Ron was unable to see his aversion to the subject.

"But… _why_? I mean, don't you remember when you played him in Quidditch? Sure, his dad was proud that Cedric technically won, but he didn't seem happy that he didn't beat you fair and square." Ron growled in frustration as his homework slipped off his lap. He threw his hands into the air and ignored it, "See what I'm gettin' at, mate?"

"Unfortunately," came Harry's curt reply. He repositioned himself, with his knee pointing towards the ceiling, and one arm behind his head, as the other dangled to the floor. "Look, I don't really want to talk about this right now, Ron."

"Right…" Ron gathered his homework into his lap once more, and glanced at it, trying to distract himself from the rain cloud named Harry. The Weasley boy quickly muttered, "Sorry, mate."

The boys sat in silence for a while, with only the scraping of a quill against paper breaking the atmosphere. Propping himself up a bit, Harry looked over to Ron, with a quizzical expression on his face. "Do you have any idea who the guest is going to be? I mean, I'd assume he-"

"Or she." Hermione's voice interjected, with a hint of annoyance. "You boys must _always _assume that just because it's a special guest that it happens to be a _male_."

Harry's eyes snapped to attention, and were riveted on the girl, as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. He could also smell a hint of daisies, once more. Spacing out, Harry stared at Hermione with an awkward smile on his face.

"That's because _most _famous wizards are just that: _wizards!_" Ron shot back, again letting his homework fall to the floor, forgotten.

"Two of the Hogwarts Founders were women, Ronald… And since I'm quite positive you haven't read _anything_ lately, I'll assume that you didn't know that witches outnumber wizards in ratio of a three to two," she said matter-of-factly, as she folded her arms across her chest.

All the while this was happening, Harry's mind was wandering elsewhere. 'I guess I never noticed… but… Hermione's got the cutest dimples, when she smiles…' He felt his eyes transfixed on the girl, and simply could not bring himself to tear them away, no matter what he told himself. 'I know she's just a friend, nothing more… but there's no law that says she can't be an attractive friend!'

Hermione and Ron stopped their arguing, or rather, Hermione silenced the boy with a motion of her hand, and glanced over to Harry, who was focusing intently upon her. "Harry, stop leering at me like that… You're giving me the creeps." She shivered and said, "Have I ever mentioned how disconcerting it is when you space out like that?"

"I-I was not spacing out!" Harry fired back, quickly snapping to attention, and wiping the smile off of his face. He sat up normally, and stared at Hermione for a moment. 'I can look at her. I'm _not _going to act like some analyst. Hermione is Hermione. Just a friend.' Convincing himself that he was satisfied with that answer, Harry stood up.

"What's up, mate?" Ron said, once _again _seizing any opportunity to avoid doing his homework. "Goin' somewhere?"

Harry simply shrugged, and glanced down at his watch. "I figured I'd go see a friend real quick, before dinner." In truth, Harry just wanted to take a bit of a walk. Anything to keep him from falling asleep, or falling into another trance-like state, over Hermione. He tightened the belt around his waist, and headed towards the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Just going to go grab a breath of fresh air, you know?"

"What _kind _of friend, eh?! _Eh?!_" Ron asked, insinuation heavily laced in his words. "Is it a girl!?" His eyebrows raised up and down suggestively, and had he cared to look over, he would've noticed Hermione's crestfallen expression.

Harry did. "No, nothing like that Ron… _You _know how good I am with girls. I can't even _talk _to one other than Hermione without acting like Snape, confronted with a bath." The young champion simply shrugged once more, waving off Hermione's look, and Ron's stupidity. "I just wanted to go talk to Cedric… The final task is next week."

"Would… you like us to go… _with_ you?" Hermione said, slowly, as though she was trying to cautiously word her statement, due to fear.

"Well… I'd be a little more comfortable if it was _just _Cedric and I…" Harry offered an apologetic look as penance and said, "I'm sorry…"

Shrugging, the bookworm popped a lemon drop into her mouth, and said, "That's quite alright, Harry… Which ever makes you feel better." Cheerfully, the girl produced another lemon drop and held it up. "Lemon drop?"

Grinning roguishly, Harry said, "It's not loaded, is it?" Utilizing his quick hands, his arms shot out faster than a bolt of lightening, and plucked the candy out of the air, as it was lobbed towards him.

"I'm not going to stoop to the levels you have, Harry," she said, with a huff. "I'm still upset about that, even though I've forgiven you." She folded her arms, and mentally added, "At least he's smiling though… If I can just keep him smiling…"

"What're you blabbin' about, Hermione?!" Ron said, as he stared at the girl incredulously. He had heard her whispering _something_, like she usually did when she talked to herself.

The girl quickly covered up, by glaring at him with a raised eyebrow. "I didn't say anything, Ronald!"

"Yeah, sure…" Ron said, convinced he had heard her mumbling something to herself. His curiosity would _not _let him drop it, however. He simply stored away the moment in the back of his generally empty brain. "Mental, you are…" the redhead added under his breath.

Harry said his goodbyes, and closed the portrait of the fat lady behind him. Once alone, he closed his eyes and leaned back against the portraid, sinking to the floor with a massive, prolonged sigh. "I probably _should _talk to Cedric about the last task… _Survival_ isprize enough for me, and I don't have to _win_, to get my prize."

A few clanks later, Harry heard the voice of Sir Caddogan calling to him. "Fear not, ye of little faith! Betwix mine blade and shield shall the cursed fall, and the righteous prevail to eternity! I shalt slay thine foes for thee, young Potter!"

Groaning, Harry got to his feet to face the overzealous knight. "_Look_. There's nothing you can do. You're just a port-" Stopping himself from saying anything, the young man instead pointed towards a far off picture frame. "Is that…?! It couldn't be! Is that my greatest nemesis, in that picture frame over there?!" He could've _easily _won a golden globe for his performance.

Perhaps not, but it still was convincing enough to trick the ardent paladin into dashing away.

"Crazy old codger…" the young man muttered, as he made his way towards the Owlery. Harry had been meaning to send a letter to Sirius all week, but he simply hadn't found time to do it, so, while he had free time to utilize, he trudged towards the Owlery, where Hedwig would be calmly waiting for him.

-

Harry smiled broadly, as he made his way through a corridor. He had just sent a letter to his godfather, and as always, it cheered up his generally pessimistic and bleak attitude. Impending doom on the horizon can only keep a person down for so long, before they find little ways to avoid it.

Sirius was one of them. It reminded Harry that he had a chance. He actually had a _chance _to escape the Dursleys. All he had to do was survive the school year.

"I wonder where Cedric would be, at a time like this…" Harry murmured, as he aimlessly wandered through the halls of Hogwarts. It hadn't taken him long to finish his letter, and he was now on objective two, on his list. Harry had a few concerns about the final task, and he needed to speak with Cedric Diggory, who had become a type of surrogate brother, if you will.

Rounding a corner, Harry managed to simply run into Professor Dumbledore. Quite literally. Harry collided with the Headmaster, and fell to the floor, though the wily old wizard kept to his feet.

"Ah!" the wizard dressed in silky blue robes cried, "Harry, my boy! Come, come. I have a guest who would _quite _like to meet you!"

Sharply dressed in an extravagant, black suit, a man with light hair, carelessly tossed to one side of his head turned around. He grinned widely, and said, "So, Albus, this is Harry Potter? Bit shorter than I would've imagined… and not _nearly _as lecherous-looking as the paper says." The man's glossy white teeth shone as he smiled, and his seemingly different colored eyes focused on Harry, who was still on the ground.

"Yes… Yes, David, that is Harry Potter."

Harry stared at the man in amazement, before stammering, "Y-You're David Bowie!"

**

* * *

**: I know it wasn't much for content, but I'm going somewhere with all of this, I promise! Yes, David Bowie. That's right, folks. Remember his mention in the first chapter? Hahah, anyway, I'll elaborate on _why _he's here in the next chapter. Moving on… We're getting nearer and nearer to the final task. I must ask myself and you reviewers a tough question. I'm debating Cedric's fate… I admit, I didn't intend to kill him when I realized I'd get this far, but now… Well, it's up in the air for good ol' Cedric. I'm not sure what to do. Please, give me guidance! Maybe that'll help me reach a decision. Anyway, if you have the time, please leave me a review. I'd enjoy it very much! 


	23. Storm Cloud

**Foreword**: Basically I'm a lazy person. With school creeping up on me, I find myself putting my nose to the grindstone more often than not, doing stupid homework. It limits writing time, but I shouldn't let something so menial get in the way. I should be working more efficiently, but unfortunately, I'm not. So you'll have to bear with me for the time being, haha. Sorry, folks.

**Disclaimer**: It seems that due to some legal reasons, I'm not the owner of J.K. Rowling… Such a dumb thing. I should obviously own it. Let's get serious here. She should hand it over to me, just because I want it. Anyway, back to reality. If, for some reason, J.K. Rowling decides she wants this story down, so be it. Although, between just you and I, I'd still write this story anyway, haha. I'd find some way to distribute it… Er… I mean, I would comply with the law, obviously!

* * *

**Storm Cloud**

"That's right! David Bowie, at your service, lad."

Climbing to his feet, Harry stood, awestruck by the man. "I er… I was actually just on… _Why _are you here?" He quickly shook his head and stammered, "Sorry! That came out completely wrong!"

"No worries… At least you're not like _some _of those crazy people…" The influential magician/musician imitated the annoying voice of a crazed school girl, "_Dye-vid! Dye vid! Come and sing me a song! Hey Dye-vid, sign this for me!_"

"Ahem, yes… David has agreed to fill in for Ludo Bagman, in the last task. Apparently, Mr. Bagman had quite a bit of money riding on the tournament, and would be unable to adequately perform his duties." Dumbledore folded his hands together, and nodded towards David Bowie, with his glossy glasses shining silver in the torch light.

"Right, well… Um… I've really got to be going. Professor Dumbledore, Mr. Bowie…" Harry curtly nodded and turned away, in his search for Cedric. '_Everything _seems so awkward…' mused the young man. 'I… Nothing _feels _right.'

-

The rain cloud darkened visibly, and seemed to thunder, as if waiting to unleash its fury upon the nearest possible object. The rain cloud, aptly named Harry Potter, trudged down the hallway, looking desperately for Cedric Diggory, the only other person who was in the same plight as he was. Unfortunately, he was unable to be found, regardless of how hard the Fourth Year Gryffindor looked.

It was beginning to wear on his mood.

Harry closed his eyes for a moment, and sighed heavily. "_Where _did he get off to? It's like the Earth just opened up and swallowed him."

Harry heard a sneering voice behind him. "Looking for that mudblood again?!" It was obviously Draco Malfoy. He didn't even need to turn around to figure that one out.

In no mood to deal with Malfoy's childish antics, Harry sighed, and said, "I said _he_. Hermione's a girl. Or is that too difficult a concept for your prissy little self to grasp?" The black haired boy turned, to face the Slytherin.

"I always _knew _she was hiding something under that jumper of hers…" Draco smirked at his lewd remark, and felt himself begin to laugh.

Remember that rain cloud from before?

It was ready to start blasting lightening.

Harry took a few steps forward and defiantly stood in front of the other boy, his wand completely neglected, still in his pocket. "Shut up, Malfoy. I'm sure you understand _that_. I'm sure your father says it enough to you."

Draco's eyes widened in anger as he paled even further, seemingly removing all colored pigment from his face. "How _dare _you speak about my father like that!" The boy fumbled with his cloak, and began to draw his wand.

Harry, on instinct, reached out and shoved Malfoy stiffly, sending him to the ground on his pure-blood backside. Everyone knows that pure-bloods are too sophisticated to simply fall on their butt.

"You'll pay for that, _Potter_!" Malfoy leveled his wand at Harry, preparing to blast the young man with some form of malicious spell.

Before the aforementioned rain cloud could lash back with a lightening bolt of his own, Harry noticed something strange about the situation. He paused, to assess the situation. 'Okay, so Malfoy was going to hex me, most likely… Where _is _Malfoy?'

A pair of voices rang with laughter as two flashes of red caught Harry's attention from the corner of his eye. Everything happened so quickly that the Boy-Who-Lived was unable to process the information quickly enough.

"Get me down from here, you bloody weasles! My _Father _will hear of this!" came the whiny voice of Draco Malfoy.

Harry glanced up, and saw that the Slytherin Seeker had been literally _glued _to the stone ceiling. Copious amounts of repressed laughter issued forth, like a refreshing rain, after a long drought, draining the murky rain cloud of his angry disposition.

One of the twins sheathed his wand, and devilishly grinned, as he slapped his brother's hand in victory. "Don't worry, Harry."

"We have your back." This one was George… It had to be. Why else would there be a giant "G" on his breast-pocket? Unless Fred did it on purpose, this twin would be assumed to be George.

By default, the one labeled Fred laughed slightly, and said, "Just like-"

"You have Hermione's." Fred clapped his brother, George, on the back, for his quick wit, in completing his sentence.

They both shot a knowing look at the other, and smirked broadly, adding in a single word to their statement. "Literally!"

Harry blushed brightly, and stammered, "I-I do _not_! Wait! I mean, I _do _have Hermione's back, but that just means I'll prote-" He stopped to calm himself down. Unfortunately, the Weasley twins were expert operators, and they knew _exactly _what buttons to press, regardless of the person they encountered. "Look…" Harry looked at the twins with honesty, and said, "Hermione and I are friends. I know what it might look like from the outside, but really… We're just close friends."

Again, the twins simply laughed at the ridiculous notion, and returned to ridiculing Draco, who was plastered to the ceiling.

Unnerved by their reaction, Harry nervously pointed down the hall, as he addressed the two. "Right… well… I'm going to go find Cedric." As he was walking away, Harry interrupted Malfoy, screaming for justice, "Just stick around a little longer, Malfoy. If you're lucky, Filch will find you… If not… Well, I'm sure Peeves would enjoy some company."

George gasped, "That's quite-"

"The idea!" Fred finished.

"By me!" exclaimed George, obviously with the pun intended.

Fred shook his head and shrugged, "How could we-"

"_Not _think of that?!" The alternate Weasley twin ended, also throwing his arms up into the air.

In unison, the pair shouted, "It's _perfect_! Peeves! Oh Peeve-sy! Where are you, my precious little Poltergeist!?"

Harry simply continued his way, as he noted the growling in his stomach. "Hm… Maybe I'll just find him _after _dinner. I sure could use a good meal. If my non-existent luck decides to kick in one of these days, maybe Cedric will actually _be _there." After a thoughtful moment, he ruefully added, "And perhaps it will be less awkward than my _last _few encounters…"

-

"Hermione, you're going to _choke _him if you keep fussing with his collar like that…" Ron meant, as he butchered the sentence, by chewing food, drinking pumpkin juice, and speaking all at the same time, spewing chunks of food all over the place.

"Ronald, haven't you ever learned that you're _not _supposed to speak with your mouth full?" Hermione gave Harry's collar one final tug, and leaned back, to appraise her work, finding it quite satisfactory. "That's much better, Harry."

"I don't see any difference…" Harry grumbled, as he began to poke at his dinner, eating quite slowly.

"See!?" Ron sputtered, after finally swallowing the massive lump of masticated food. "I told you! There wasn't anything wrong with it in the _first _place." Muttering, Ron returned to his food, "Mental case, that one…"

"Oh, hush, Ron." The girl scooted closer to Harry, and gently elbowed him. "And _you_," she said softly, attempting to soothe the savage beast that was her friend. "You're in a right foul mood, Harry… If you'd like, we can talk about it later… I'm always open, remember?"

"Yeah, yeah…" he said, flippantly, sampling his mashed potatoes. After a few moments, and Hermione's intent stare piercing holes into the side of his head, Harry finally caved in, with a sigh. "It's just… I can't find Cedric anywhere, and I _really _need to talk to him. I'm _really _worried about this upcoming task."

Hermione glanced at Ron quickly. Upon seeing that the Weasley boy was much more interested in wrestling with the massive plate of food piled in front of him than in their conversation, Hermione said, "Well, Harry… I… I could help you find him, if you need me to. Just let me know how I can help you. That's all I ask. You don't have to do all of this alone, remember?"

"Yeah… I know. It would be nice to talk later…" Feeling that he hadn't fully conveyed the meaning of his statement, Harry added, "You know, just the two of us. With everything so hectic lately, I haven't had much time to relax." It was the full truth. He just needed some time to kick back and relax. Sure, he was able to do it with Ron around, but it was much calmer, much slower, and infinitely more subdued when it was only the two of them.

Without batting an eyelash, Hermione beamed and said, "Alright, it's a date."

As suave of a person as Harry James Potter was, he was easily able to keep the natural flow of the conversation going, with a succinct, well placed, "Err…" Harry's cheeks were tinged with pink, and he felt his heartbeat increase slightly. Only slightly.

However, before he could react, Hermione nudged the boy, "Look, Harry! There's Cedric, just over there!" She pointed to Cedric, who was standing in a corner of the Great Hall, with none other than Viktor Krum. "Go! Go ahead and talk with him, Harry."

As always, he took Hermione's sound advice and approached the two cautiously, not intending to eavesdrop. However, that's exactly what happened.

"I vish to know vhat zat leetle boy iss do-ink vith Herm-ninny. Vhat iss so wrong vith zat? I _vill_ get my answers from Har-ray Pottar." Krum's arms were folded across his broad chest, and he stared intently at Cedric, who had apparently confronted the larger boy.

The Hufflepuff flashed a smile, and calmly said, "Krum, you're going to stay away from Harry and Hermione. You understand me?" There was something dangerous in his voice… It was unsettling to hear it manifest itself, as Cedric was usually quite pleasant. "He's… got enough on his mind as it is."

"Ant _vhy _is Herm-ninny off limits as vell?" Krum was obviously more interested in her than in Harry. He remained stony-faced, as the younger, shorter boy raised an eyebrow.

"Because I _said _she was." Harry caught a glimpse of Cedric Diggory's eyes, as they flashed severely, while focusing on Krum. "Are we clear?"

Reluctantly, Krum nodded, and stalked off, clearly upset.

"What… was all that about?" Harry said, startling the Hufflepuff Champion. It simply didn't add up in his mind. It was as though Harry was missing a key piece of information.

"Ah! That was nothing… Krum and I were just talking business. You know how it is… Just making sure he doesn't go around bothering people." Cedric leaned against the stone wall, and, with a bit of fast talking, diverted the subject of the conversation from his earlier altercation with Viktor Krum. "Anyway… What do you need, buddy?"

"Well… I was…" Harry quit beating around the bush, and simply admitted, "I'm nervous about this last task."

"There's your problem, Harry. You're thinking about it too much. We've made it this far and there's only one left. Not to say this one will be _easy_, but I think we can handle it." Cedric patted his friend on the shoulder and said, "I think you should just take a day off, or something. Just forget all about the tournament and relax tonight."

"Alright… I was planning on talking with Hermione tonight anyway." Murmuring, Harry quietly added, "That's about as relaxing as it gets."

Grinning, Cedric inwardly shouted in triumph. There was no doubt in his mind. Harry had fallen _hard _for his best friend, Hermione Granger. "Sounds like quite the time," he agreed. "You know, Harry… When it comes to friendship, you've really got to be one of the luckiest guys around. Just don't take anything for granted."

Harry was left to ponder the cryptic words, as Cedric had meandered off into the buzz of excitement known as Hogwarts' Great Hall.

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Okay, all done with Chapter 23, and I hope you liked it. I certainly didn't. It was like a whirlwind, and felt like a bunch of random crap (pardon the language, any of you young fellows) thrown into paragraph format.

Also, well…. This story is coming close to an end, honestly. At least, the Goblet of Fire era is. I'm _seriously_ considering going through Order of the Phoenix era as well. If I did, which I most likely will, I'll be able to express what I've been planning for a while more correctly, rather than just slapping it onto the end of this story, just to satisfy myself and everyone else. Not sure if I should just do it in "An Issue of Comfort" or post up a new story. It'd probably be best to keep it here, though I'm not sure.

If you can spare some time, go ahead and leave me a review. I'd like that very much.


	24. When It Hits

**Foreword**: Sorry it took me so freakin' long to get this chapter out. I got blasted with homework, and I've finally gotten back into the gym for boxing, so my writing time is at a minimum at the moment. I did, however, get nailed with one hell of a virus, so I'm at home, away from all that junk, doing the writing I _should _be doing.

**IMPORTANT**: So basically, I finished this chapter as of last Friday, but my internet has been down all weekend, and just recently came back. I'm incredibly sorry but I didn't have any way to get it uploaded, since my internet had crashed last week, and most of this week.h

**Even MORE Important**: Now, before I forget, I'd like to thank all of you, especially those of you who've been with me from the very beginning. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

**Disclaimer**: Ah yes, the legal debate… Well, currently, I'm driving a hard bargain to J.K. Rowling, so… Hopefully she'll take it, and sell the rights of Harry Potter to me. Then I'll be able to do things MY way. Heheh… Yeah, I'm a bit delusional. I don't own, and never will own Harry Potter.

* * *

**When It Hits...**

"This is quite odd…" Hermione murmured, as she shoved a few books into her bag. Glancing around, she noticed that the library was deathly silent, and there were no other students in sight. "It _is _a Thursday, so there should be at _least _a few people here, finishing their work." The girl shook her head and picked up her things. She had promised to spend some time with Harry, and she intended to keep it. The girl couldn't be bothered by the lack of inhabitation of the library at this point.

"Hey, hey, hey! Wait up!" Hermione sighed with relief. At least this person could speak coherent English, so apparently it wasn't Krum. However, she did get the feeling that she knew the voice of the speaker.

Cedric Diggory poked his head out from between two book shelves and waved to Hermione. "Evening, Hermione," Cedric said, as he smiled genially to her. Motioning towards her back, he said, "Do you mind if I take one of those books from you? Uh… Normally, I'd let you have it, but it's kind of a matter of life and death here…"

"Um, of course." She placed her bag back down on the table, and eyed him, "Which book, exactly?"

"Advanced Charms, Volume V, if I'm not mistaken. I figured that you'd be the only one who would conceivably have it." Cedric folded his arms and leaned against the book shelf. "Sorry to do this to you, but yeah… I think I _might _need it just a bit more at the moment."

"Oh, not a problem at all. I can certainly understand, Cedric." She handed him a book and slung her bag over her shoulder. "If you don't mind me asking… Why exactly are you here alone? It just strikes me as odd. If I remember correctly, you don't cram for anything. At least, that's what Harry says."

"Yeah, pretty much, he's right. More than anything, I'm hiding." Cedric shrugged, and began to leaf through the book airily. "I did want to look up a few spells, just to brush up though."

Raising an eyebrow, Hermione said, "_Hiding_? From what?"

"Oh, you know… This and that… Nosey people, nagging girlfriends, homework… and did I mention nagging girlfriends?" Chuckling, Cedric said, "Cho's been extremely uptight lately… Bit of a nuisance really." He waved his hand, as if to brush the subject aside, and said, "The task's on Saturday, as you know… Have you… you know, spoken to Harry?"

"Actually, I was just on my way to meeting with him…"

"Right. Is he prepared for the next task?" The Hufflepuff's eyes narrowed, and he focused on a few lines of text, reading intently. Apparently, he had found what he was looking for, as he quickly scribbled a few lines onto a piece of parchment.

Hermione tucked a few loose strands of hair behind her ear and bit her lip nervously, "I hope so… He's… He's got a sharp mind and is a good magician, but I'm not sure… I'm doing as much as I can to support him. I've run him through hundreds of scenarios, and given him dozens of spells, but… It's a bit of a sore subject for Harry. We usually only talk about it very briefly."

"I see… Well, I don't want to keep you any longer than necessary. I got what I need." Cedric tucked the thick tome under his arm, and began to recede back between the bookshelves. Calling from the crevice, he said, "Take care of him, will you? He needs _you_."

"I will… I'm always there for him." She felt as though Cedric had put emphasis on the 'you' at the end of his sentence, but the bookworm simply ignored it. It wouldn't be the first time that people tried to implicate that they should get together. But still… Hermione's gut was telling her that things had begun to change between the two of them. For better or for worse, she wasn't sure just yet. "I'm always there, no matter what." Hermione shrugged, and simply walked away.

-

It was just one of those moments. One of those sparkling gems that should be framed, and treasured for an eternity. It was a single star, daring to shine in an otherwise starless night.

Hermione felt a genuine smile grace her face, as she entered the Gryffindor Common Room silently. She quickly spied Harry, who was sitting on his favorite couch, with his hands folded in his lap. She could easily tell that he was doing his best to appear normal, but she could see the eagerness in his eyes, and the enthusiasm in his demeanor. It was all wrapped in a package of innocence. The kind of naivety that made Harry an endearing person to so many people.

'Especially me… Scratch that,' she thought, shaking her head. 'That sounds too cliché… and much too _star-crossed lover_-ish for my tastes. Harry and I are friends. Nothing more.' Deciding to savor the moment, the girl leaned against the wall, mainly hidden from sight, watching her friend fidget ceaselessly, as he waited for her.

"Ah! Look out!" Hermione felt a body bump into her, and turned around in time to see Neville trying his best to balance a cumbersome, potted plant in his arms. "No! Ah, no!" he cried, as he felt his grip slipping.

Hermione quickly placed her own hands on the pot, steadying it. "You know, you really should be more careful with something so fragile, Neville," she said, chiding him as she usually did.

"Thank you! Oh thank you so much! I would fail my Herbology final without this plant…" Neville looked incredibly relieved, as he thanked Hermione profusely. "Gran would be so mad at me…" He shuddered at the thought of his grandmother becoming angry with him, remembering when she had last sent him a Howler. "Hey… How come you were so close to the doorway, Hermione? I almost ran over you… sorry about that, by the way."

"Oh, er… I was just coming back from the library, and had only been in the room for a moment when you came in." Hermione felt awful. Deep within her stomach, she felt like there was an immeasurable weight sinking to the floor. Since coming to Hogwarts, and becoming friends with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, she had been increasingly more comfortable with lying.

And much more reliant on it.

"Oh… Right." Neville seemed satisfied with the explanation, but then again, he would _never _have expected somebody as righteous as Hermione to lie to him. "Ah! Oh no!" He cried, glancing into the pot. "It's drying out! Sorry, Hermione, but I really have to go. Professor Moody will _kill_ me if I let his plant die!" With that said, he bolted up the stairs as quickly as his body would take him.

Rolling her eyes, Hermione muttered, "He really needs to work on that memory of his…" She turned back around, hoping to continue spying on Harry for a few moments.

Instead, she turned, and was greeted by the smiling face of Harry, his sparkling green eyes glistening with glee. "Hermione! I thought you might have forgotten about me," he said sheepishly.

"O-Of course not, Harry. I – er…" She was caught in a bit of a scrape, and quite off guard.

"It feels like it's been ages since we've gotten together like this," Harry mused, as his friend followed him to the ever familiar couch. He was absolutely beaming by the time he had sprawled across his favorite piece of furniture.

Hermione seated herself on the edge of the couch, which was about the only place she _could _be seated without literally using _Harry _as a couch. "Yes, it has been quite a while… I suppose we're both to blame though. There's so much going on all at once. There's hardly any time to breathe, more or less spend time with your friends."

"At least we haven't heard a peep from Rita Skeeter after that apology."

Though shocked, Hermione decided to amplify the theatrics, and dramatically said, "Harry Potter, Boy Storm-Cloud just saw the… the _bright side _of a situation?!"

"H-Hey…" Harry said gently, uncomfortably fidgeting in his seat. "I'm not _that _bad… am I?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow and chuckled a bit, "Harry, if you were the sky, the world would be drowned by now."

The Champion sat up and smiled dolefully at his feet. "I'm… not doing it on _purpose_… I'm really _trying _to be happy. Sometimes I just get a little distracted." He felt a band of warmth press against his back, and felt five fingers grip his shoulder lightly.

"I know, Harry… I know." She scooted closer to him and stared into the glowing fire in the hearth. "We'll get through this, Harry… Just one more task, and you'll be free. You'll finally be safe." She felt it most inappropriate to mention that he would _also _be going back to the Dursley's house. It seemed like too much of a mood killer.

Harry inadvertently leaned ever closer, until finally his head sagged, resting it upon Hermione's shoulder. "I can't wait for that… One of these years, I'm going to have a _normal _school term."

"Perhaps… but then again, you'd have to actually find out what normal _is_, Harry. One could argue that _this _is normal… for us at least." She held on tighter, and stroked his hair with the other hand. "It's not _all _bad though…"

The young man smiled fondly, as his increasingly attractive (though he still adamantly refused to allow himself to fully recognize it) friend displayed her friendly (which he also adamantly refused to perceive as anything more) affections. "I've got friends with me… And I have you to help me out of any situation I somehow manage to get myself into."

"So I'm not considered a friend now?" Amused, Hermione's lips turned into a droll smile. If there was one thing she had begun to indulge upon, it was teasing Harry. Unfortunately for him, he had a habit of setting himself up for it.

"Hm… Well, you're sorta in your own category." Harry yawned deeply and shivered a bit. It _was _getting quite late, and time was beginning to take its effect upon the young man.

"And that means exactly _what_?"

Harry disentangled himself from her, and stood up, stretching his tired, aching body. He let out a yawn and shrugged. "Man, it's getting late…" Glancing at the clock he blinked sleepily, and took a few steps towards the Boy's Dormitory.

"Wait a moment, Harry. You didn't answer my question!" Hermione stood up as well and went to his side. She felt something tugging at her, from the deepest, darkest corners of her brain. Unfortunately, the bookish girl couldn't clearly identify that something, as it was too vague.

He turned and shrugged. "I don't know right yet, Hermione." With that, Harry reached his arms out and hugged the girl tightly, whispering to her, "But it's bound to be something positive…" The fourteen year old boy let go, and stepped back. "Goodnight, Hermione."

Watching the infamous Harry Potter, but more importantly, the boy that she was proud to call a close friend, retreat to his bedroom, Hermione felt her mouth once again form into a smile. There are times in your life when you suddenly realize some things, and when you do it makes you feel as though you'd been solving a puzzle while missing half the pieces. You know that when it hits, it hits hard.

And it was just then that it hit her.

Harry was no longer "just a friend".

* * *

**Author's Notes**: Basically, I'm a waste of a person, haha. I should've had this out WEEKS ago. I wouldn't have had to worry about my internet kicking out if I had finished this chapter back when I _should _have. I really want to apologize, all of you readers. Really, sorry… Now, we're winding down towards the end of the story, folks. Hope to hear from a few of you, if you have time. Go ahead and leave me a little review, if you feel the need. I'd certainly like to hear from you all… Even if you just want to yell at me for taking so long, haha. 


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